By GABRIEL KATUHO
THE National Catholic Education Secretary for Port Moresby, Fr. Lawrence Arockiaraj has been appointed as the new National Education Board (NEB) Member.
Education Minister Hon. Lucas Dawa Dekena announced Fr. Arockiaraj’s appointed earlier this week in an appointment letter dated January 30 2025.
As a new member, Fr. Arockiaraj will represent the catholic Church as stipulated in Section 12(2) of the Education Act, 1983 which was amended in 1995.
In an interview, Fr. Arockiaraj acknowledged the Ministry of Education for the appointment and pledged to act upon the mandated responsibility for a better course.
“On behalf of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, I sincerely thank Minister Dekena and Secretary for the Department for Education and the Chairman of National Education Board (NEB), Dr. Uke Kombra.”
He stated that the Catholic Church in Papua New Guinea runs 3,311 schools in PNG under 19 Catholic Dioceses in the country.
“Since the pre-independence era, the Catholic Church has played a significant role in the development of education systems in Papua New Guinea,” Fr. Arockiaraj said.
“We wish to do the same in the future in bringing quality education, which will bring a better future to this great nation,” he said.
