Prime Minister Hon. James Marape has thanked President Xi Jinping and the Government of the People’s Republic of China for a K50 million grant China will make available to Papua New Guinea soon.

This grant is one of the results emanating from the Prime Minister’s trip to China to attend the Third Belt & Road forum in Beijing and his bi-lateral meetings on the sidelines with President Xi and Premier Li Qiang, as well as meetings with various other Chinese leaders.

Prime Minister Marape said the funding would go into the construction of business and technical facilities in selected secondary schools in the country, in line with his government’s aim to upskill students before they finish Grade 12.

He said: “I am grateful to President Xi Jinping and his government for this grant.

“We will pick certain secondary schools to build business and technical facilities. This will complement the government’s drive to have secondary school children learn business and trade skills.

“Our aim is that by the time our children finish Grade 12, they are not only educated academically, but also skilled in the areas of business, and technical and trade skills.

“This places them at an advantage when they leave school, as they are better able to start their own small businesses from the knowledge and skills they have received, whether in agriculture, tourism, cookery, bakery, carpentry, auto mechanic or whatever technical skills they have picked up. The opportunities are wider for them this way.

“I thank the Chinese Government for this grant as this is one of results that has arrived at the back of this visit,” PM Marape said.