National Youth Development Authority

2023 Youth Parliament gets underway in Port Moresby

Facilitated by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA in partnership with the National Youth Development Authority and with funding support from the European Union’s Spotlight Initiative, the Youth Parliament is being held from 11th - 15th December 2023.

The Youth Parliament was first conducted in 2020 and since then it has extended to the provincial level, with UNFPA and NYDA, convening the first provincial youth parliament in Morobe, this year.

From security guard to programs director

When Christopher was not selected for the high school of his choice, he came to Port Moresby to look for a paid job. He took up a short computer accounting course while working his first job as a security guard, but his passion for the creative arts eventually led him to apply for Theatre Arts courses at the University of Papua New Guinea.

“Studying Theatre Arts opened up a whole new world for me,” says Christopher.

“It helped me discover my passion for social work and community development, which is what I have been doing ever since.”

Vitis Industries Back Games

Vamoka Kiso, Personal Assistant to Vitis Industries Ltd Managing Director Vicky Mosin and Southern Regional Sales Manager Thomas Palangat on behalf of Vitis Industries did the presentation at Alotau Bay Hotel.

Vitis Industries Ltd will also hand a further K10,000 to Team Alotau who are participating in the Games. In total, the company is assisting the local games with K20,000.

Regional Youth Games Council Chairman & NYDA Director General, Joe Itaki thanked Vitis industries for the timely sponsorship towards the youth games in the region.

Tripartite MoU signed for Regional Youth Games

The Regional Youth Games allows for a way forward for the engagement of youth in the rural areas, to participate in sporting tournaments to be hosted in districts.

The three agencies believe that sports is a catalyst for change and character development that enforces growth, mindset change, instils discipline and positive behaviour.

Each party to the MoU is now given the mandate to facilitate more sporting activities for youth in the rural areas, in consultation with District Development Authorities, where there is a rural focus approach.

New head of National Youth Development Authority

Itaki replaces Reuben Akia, who was acting on the position since 2018.

Itaki is from from Wapenamanda District in the Enga Province and has served in the public service for over 16 years.

He served as executive manager to the Office of Secretary and recently got appointed as Acting Deputy Secretary for Community Development in the Department for Community Development and Religion.

He recently attained a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Korea.

New director general for national youth authority

Reuben Aikea has now moved up the ranks, succeeding Norick Luio whose 3 year contract expired in June 2018.

Aikea, an evangelical pastor and dentist by profession, was an employee of National Youth Development Authority prior to his appointment as head of the agency.

Minister Eoe said Aikea’s appointment was done according to government procedures.

Minister Eoe thanked the outgoing Director General for the work he did in implementing youth oriented programs and addressing youth related issues in a bid to improve lives in the country.

Psychosis – A threat to today’s generation

Conducting aggressive campaigns and educating teenagers and youths is the roadmap to curbing this issue, says Lawrence Tau, acting coordinator of non-state partners from the National Youth Development Authority.

A month-long awareness against drugs and alcohol will be carried out in primary and secondary schools in the 3 electorates of Port Moresby.
The take-home message from the awareness drive is simple; drugs are harmful and dangerous; offenders either end up behind bars or become psychiatrically ill most or all of their life.

​Youth blamed for social issues

The National Youth Development Authority is now committed than ever before to target this population.

The youth make up a bigger part of the world's population.

They are the future of their community.

For PNG, the majority of this population is either unemployed or not in school.

This is a result of the bottleneck education system in the country.

During the launch of the Youth Skills Training Center, youth from the Kuige village in Southern Highlands Province perfectly depicted the bottleneck system through a short drama.

Remote SHP village drives youth development

Meanwhile, a remote village in Southern Highlands Province is advancing on its own in this area.

Kuige (pronounced Kwige) yesterday launched the Kutubu Youth Skills Training Center.

This centre will deliver technical education for the youth in Kuige and the LLG as a whole.

It takes only one committed man or one generation to make a stand, which can change an entire population for a long time.

Kuige has proven so.

HP to collaborate with NYDA

The Talent ID program since its inception in 2016, has reached over 600 school children at High and Secondary schools with 60% made up of females.

The TID program has two parts- one group of students attend the theory session known as “Be An Athlete” education session where the staff talk about nutrition, hygiene and hydration while the other half go through various testing protocols and after three hours both groups switch.

HP has gone forward to tie in its ‘Be An Athlete’ program with institutions like the NYDA, to improve its reach to the students