SIXTEEN policewomen and wives of police men from the Blue Haven Women’s Alliance at Morata Barracks have successfully completed a two-day financial literacy training last week, becoming the first members of the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) community to undertake such training.
The participants were presented with certificates following the completion of the training, which focused on budgeting and saving money.
Deputy Secretary for the Equality and Inclusion Division, under Department for Community Development and Religion, Mr. Jack Simbou, thanked the participants for taking the initiative to attend the training, describing financial literacy as an important skill for both public servants and those in the private sector.
“Not many of us are very good at budgeting and planning, using money and managing money. So, I think it is a very important training for us to use, or even run, in all other departments that we have,” Mr. Simbou said.
Speaking on behalf of the Deputy Secretary and the Policy Advice and Program Development Division, Assistant Director for Monitoring and Evaluation, Ms. Sharon Gore, expressed her sincere gratitude to the participants and encouraged them to put into practice the knowledge they had gained.
“Your participation and your interest to come and learn is an indication of your taking ownership of what we need to do as a country individually,” Ms. Gore said.
On behalf of the 16 members of the Blue Haven Women’s Alliance, Chairlady Ms. Josie Kikoi thanked the Department and the Secretary for making the training possible.
“It is a privilege for us, the Police Family, to attend this training. We have learned important lessons about budgeting, saving, managing our money wisely and planning for the future,” she said.
Ms. Kikoi said the skills gained through the training would be valuable not only to the participants but also to their families, associations and communities.
Ms. Kikoi encouraged her fellow participants to see the presentation of certificates not only as a celebration but as a commitment to apply the lessons learned in their daily lives.
Meanwhile, Waigani Police Station Second-in-Command, Sergeant Joe Paiembi, confirmed that the RPNGC has not previously conducted a formal financial literacy training of this kind.
He said police training has traditionally focused mainly on policing duties and operational aspects of law enforcement.
The training marks an important step towards empowering mothers of the police community with practical financial management.