K92 Mining’s Adult Literacy Program has been in operation since late 2019 and is one of K92 Mining’s many sustainable development programs in the area. In 2021, 96 students ranging in age from 21 to 75 years old from Bikupimpa and Punano villages in the Kainantu district, graduated from the program in a ceremony witnessed by local level government and district representatives, community leaders and K92 representatives. K92 views literacy as an essential part of our local investment and a key component to sustainable development. “Without reading, you don’t have education, and without education, you don’t have sustainable development,” said Mr. Jim Kia, K92 Mining’s Community Affairs Manager.

Although the pandemic delayed many programs in the Eastern Highlands, the two K92 Mining teachers continued to run the program from, or close to, their homes. The literacy level in PNG is 62%, one of the lowest in the world, due to factors that include a high percentage of the population living in rural areas and a rugged geography that makes it challenging to distribute learning materials to isolated regions. The participants have now started to read and write in English and Tok Pisin (New Guinea Pidgin or “Pidgin”), a mix of English, German, Malay, Cantonese, Kuanua and other Pacific languages that is the most widely used language in the country. The program will continue into 2022.