The International Training Institute (ITI) and Daltron on Monday formalized a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at expanding training, employment and technology opportunities for students across the country.
The agreement, signed on Monday at the ITI Badili Campus in Port Moresby, strengthens a long-standing relationship between the two organizations and will provide students with greater access to industry exposure, workplace training, discounted technology products and potential employment opportunities.
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Daltron Assistant General Manager for the South Pacific Region, M. Shehan Zahir, said the partnership reflects the company’s commitment to developing local talent and creating pathways for Papua New Guineans to enter the workforce through collaboration with ITI and the wider WR Group.
“So, we need people; we need Papua New Guineans to come and work for us. So that’s the opportunity that we will create for the students to collaborate with a company like Daltron and the WR as a larger group,” Mr. Zahir said.
Under the arrangement, students will be able to purchase products from any Daltron showroom at discounted rates through a voucher system or another mechanism determined by the institution.
“These are a few commitments that we, as an organization, are going to commit ourselves to,” he said.
ITI Chairman and Co-Founder Senthil Kumaran Sentheyval acknowledged the long history between the two organizations, saying the relationship dates back about 25 years.
“Daltron, actually, we’ve been working with them for a long time. In fact, it probably started 25 years ago,” he said.
Mr. Sentheyval said the partnership initially centered on procurement, with Daltron serving as one of the institute’s major suppliers of computers and technology equipment.
“At that time, however, it was more for purchases. They were actually the biggest one-time provider as well, so we dealt with them in getting computers and all those things in those days.”
He said the new agreement marks a shift towards deeper industry collaboration, particularly in areas such as student work placements, employment pathways, software access and specialized training programmes.
“With ITI, the main thing is we want to connect with corporates like them because it is going to benefit both of us,” he said.
“One benefit is on-the-job training for our students because they can go and work there. At the same time, they also need people, so they can look at our students and see if some of them want full-time employment.”
Mr. Sentheyval said the institute was also exploring opportunities to introduce students to software and technologies provided by Daltron through demonstrations and training sessions.
“We’re also looking at some software that they have, which we will discuss and possibly demonstrate to our students. So, they will learn that as well.”
He described the MOU as the beginning of a broader partnership and highlighted ITI’s growing national presence, with more than 1,700 students enrolled in Port Moresby and approximately 3,500 students nationwide.
“We are the biggest private institute in Papua New Guinea,” he said.
Mr. Sentheyval noted that Daltron’s continued expansion throughout the country aligns with ITI’s network of campuses, creating additional opportunities for student engagement and industry collaboration.
“Daltron, obviously, is a well-recognized brand. In recent times, I’ve seen that they’ve been expanding a lot. It’s always another city opening up another branch.”
He expressed confidence that the partnership would continue to deliver benefits for both organizations as ITI progresses towards becoming a higher education provider.
“I want to say that when we were an institute, and now as we are concentrating on becoming a higher education provider, Daltron has remained a long-standing partner,” he said.
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“So, I’m happy to work with them into the future, and I think this is just a start. We’ll keep everyone informed of how things are going and how we are progressing in the future. I think it works well for both of us.”