Institutional Support Systems and Processes

In order to get an understanding on the kind of support given to institutions, key informants who comprise of school Principals, Head Masters, Board Chairpersons and district educational representatives were interviewed. Headmasters spoke openly about the type of support they receive from the major stakeholders such as Porgera Joint Venture (PJV), Porgera Development Authority (PDA)41, Porgera Landowners Association (PLA), the three tiers of government (National, Provincial and Local Level Government Council (LLGs), parents and the community in general. Principals and Headmasters are referred to as Educational Institutions Administrators (EIA42) in this study. Each EIA was asked regarding the type of support they get from different key stakeholders and how often those supports were received. The support could either be number of visits, funding, infrastructure and facilities support, provision of equipment and learning aids, importantly assessing their attitudes towards the provision of such supports given towards the schools.

Firstly, when asked about the attitude and level of support received from the parents and the community, the nine EIAs interviewed all agreed that very little or no support was forthcoming from the landowner parents as opposed to non-Porgeran parents. Support rendered to the schools from parents may

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Porgera Development Authority – According to Bonnell (1999) was initially established in 1989 to serve as the 4th level of government between the two LLGs and the Provincial Government to manage the affairs of the district by managing the benefits from the mine. It was created to overcome bureaucratic constraints of LLGs in order to get things done and significantly to coordinate infrastructure developments (Banks and Bonnell, 1996).

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EIA – this term is used as umbrella term to cover headmasters, principals and managers of educational institutions

include attending school meetings, school work programmes, paying fees on time and following up on their children‘s school reports. However, lack of attendance and involvements in the above activities seems to be Porgeran parent‘s common attitude and behaviour as the following quotes from Headmasters and Principals illustrate,

These people here, I think their head is not right. If you talk about work, only less than 10 or 15 attend to work or school meetings for a school that has 300 plus students. When parents don‟t turn up, we charge them K5043 project fee, but they are still reluctant to pay these fees (EIA1)

Parents do not show interest in education because they do not have a good understanding about education themselves. We keep telling them in forums and school meetings that Porgera will not be like this forever. When the gold is gone, they will depend on their kids if they are well educated but instead, they run after money and their kids also follow them…some have understood and are slowly changing, not all are ignorant (EIA2).

Headmaster stated that:

Only few parents who have education at heart for their children are committed but most do not. I still need parental support to rebuild this school destroyed by tribal fighting but so far it has been very poor. It maybe Porgeran‟s attitude, I don‟t know but I need them to run this school. (EIA3)

As long as Porgeran‟s paid school fees and give lunch money whether its K50 or K100, to their kids, they don‟t take responsibility of what happens at school for their children‟s education (EIA4).

These responses according to the teachers show the attitude of most Porgeran parents in terms of their understanding and the level of support they provide to educational institutions. Based on the research, the feedback illustrates an

obvious lack of interest on the part of landowner parents in supporting their children‘s education. Some of the EIAs stated that the reason that landowner parent‘s turn away from supporting their children and the schools was due to ignorance, lack of responsibility or either blunt obsession for money. However, there were few individuals and parents within the community that did support teachers, students and the schools. It was found that parents who supported the schools well were non Porgerans who are migrants, staff of PJV or others living and working in Porgera.

In contrast, when asked about the level of support provided to educational institutions by PDA, mixed reactions were revealed. Most respondents said, PDA, at first was a vibrant organization that served its purposes well. However, the research findings revealed that it was not only concentrating its resources in Porgera but also spreading them within Enga and other places along the highlands highway. This view was expressed by many of the respondents. EIAs views were based mainly from their own years of experience and from what they have seen whilst serving in their current positions. Fifty percent of the EIAs said they have not received any support since their appointments, although they heard stories that PDA provided assistance in the past. About forty percent said that they did get some assistance but these were all one-off cases and happened some years back. Another ten percent said, that they were unsure however, some said that promises were made that were never fulfilled although follow up letters were written time and time again. The following examples highlight some of the varying responses from Headmasters and Principals:

Nil! We have not had any support from PDA. The current chairman made some commitments in 2007 to give us a staff house but to date we have not received any assistance from PDA (EIA1).

I‟ve been here for the last 6 years. I heard they did provide assistance previously but over the last few years, there hasn‟t been any support. We have been writing so many letters but have not received any response. They keep saying PJV did not give us any money and little we have is put to law and order and they give all sorts of excuses. In

2006 when I was the deputy they gave two staff houses and said to build an assembly hall but they didn‟t build it. When I came in nothing more was happening (EAI3).

This school was set up by PDA but since its establishment, there was little ongoing systematic support. This is a mining school; we should be well established with updated facilities. But there is no dialogue between PDA and the school because of ongoing frustrations and different change of management (EIA5)

The classrooms you see there are through the Tax Credit Scheme (TCS). Apart from that nothing else and we have been tirelessly requesting for assistance and nothing seems to be working right for us, I just feel like giving up (EIA8).

These responses show that although there was some form of assistance given to the schools over the last few years, they were all on an ad hoc basis. Once assistance was rendered, there was no follow up, monitoring or further consultation between them (PDA) and the schools. The research findings further revealed that most EIAs and local Porgerans expected greater opportunities for dialogue, support and commitment on a regular basis as long as the mine is producing gold. The EIAs views were similar to the sentiment expressed by these following local elite,

As long as there is smoke gushing from the mill, we expect development and more development. This is our gold, not yours

(LOY3)

However, according to PDA, support was given to schools in various forms including individual scholarships and infrastructure support. As stressed by a key person;

We cannot continue to burn money to projects when landowners cannot look after the facilities. We put up buildings and they are burnt down within months. We have now shifted our focus to law and order because that is where the problem is at the moment (MKS7).

The research revealed that the landowners need to organize themselves to harness mine benefits. There are no systematic and coordinated efforts too on the part of key stakeholders. Furthermore, Porgeran parents themselves are lack to understand the value of education that would help them in the long run.

Another theme that emerged from the research was the lack of support and low motivation levels amongst teachers. Many initially moved to Porgera district to teach because it hosts a world class mine. Their expectations were to live and teach in schools that have better classrooms, equipped with good learning facilities such as desks, computers, duplicating machines, and access to good staff accommodation with electricity and sanitation facilities, and opportunities for up-skilling. However, many teachers faced disappointments as pointed out by one of the Headmasters,

Many of us were shocked at the first instance when we came but we are still teaching her(EIA1).

When asked; what kind of the support they were getting from PJV, PDA or the parents were? Many hesitated and said nothing as illustrated by the following responses from the Headmasters;

I was teaching in Lae but got a call this year so came thinking that a call from a school within a mining town is a privilege but when I came I was shocked because there was hardly anything here, even for teaching (EIA1)

Another Principal stressed that:

They pay us mining allowance44 (paid by the government) which we know of but many of our staff do not have access to those allowances and maybe free electricity as our incentive or I don‟t know but nothing really from the mine or PDA. I have been teaching for six years here and haven‟t been paid my mining allowances (EIA2).

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Mining Allowances are paid to teachers every year by the government as an inducement allowance for teachers working in mining communities. It is often been claimed from the National Department of Education Office in Port Moresby.

Another added that; Nonpayment of mining allowance only adds more pain and makes our lives very difficult and suffering us here with our families. This is a place where you survive on money (EIA7).

Another area mentioned by one of the Principals was the need for teachers to be up-skilled in terms of their teaching experiences and qualifications.

Times are changing and the National Department of Education (NDoE) is initiating a lot of reforms in the way we teach. Most of the teachers are certificate holders and cannot deliver quality material to students especially when we have upper primary students from year six to year eight. We need qualified teachers (EIA4).

What will we gain if we finish from teaching at this school? It would be great if they include us in in-house-trainings. Teachers know they can‟t get anything out from teaching in Porgera because there is nothing attractive for them sweating out your guards in an expensive place. Teachers are working in isolation and that has been a problem. (EIA4).

One Headmaster stressed the hardship that he endures in trying to rebuild the school recently burnt down through a tribal fight, right within the heart of the mine.

As an implementer I see that PJV is not doing enough for local people and I am not getting the assistance I would expect from a mining company. I just came in and am struggling to rebuild this skeleton school doing what I could (EIA3).

As shown by the responses, most of the Headmasters who have been teaching in Porgera have not received their mining allowances. It is paid from the education office in Port Moresby45 and for them to travel to claim them in Port Moresby is the hard because the cost of travel from Porgera to Port Moresby will be the same as the amount they will claim.

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Teachers have not been motivated and supported adequately within Porgera to live and work.