WEST New Britain Province has launched its Youth Online Registration platform to identify disengaged and out-of-school youths and connect them with opportunities in education, training, employment, business, sports and leadership.
The platform will establish a provincial database capturing information on where young people live, their education, skills and interests.
The information will help the West New Britain Provincial Government, National Youth Development Authority (NYDA) and District Development Authorities identify suitable opportunities and better target youth programmes.
The launch in Kimbe this week brought together national and provincial agencies and marks a step towards implementing the National Youth Engagement Strategy (NYES), which aims to connect disengaged and out-of-school youths with development pathways in their communities.
Minister for Youth, Religion and Community Development Jason Peter said he understood the challenges facing young people, drawing from his own experience growing up in a single-parent home in Lae.
āI know the challenges of youth because I was once a young person growing up in a single home in Lae City.”
“Through church programmes, I was able to turn my life around and pursue my education through second-chance institutions like FODE,ā Minister Peter said.
He encouraged disengaged and out-of-school youths to reach out, take control of their future and pursue opportunities available to them.
He said young people could turn their aspirations into reality when they remained focused and kept God at the centre of their lives.
West New Britain Governor Sasindran Muthuvel said the initiative would help the Government understand who disengaged and out-of-school youths are, where they are located, what skills they have and what opportunities they need.
āDisengaged youths, or out of school youths are increasingly not only the leaders of tomorrow, but they are also an important part of the leadership today,ā Governor Muthuvel said.
NYDA Director General Joe Itaki said the National Youth Engagement Strategy was developed following a 2024 ministerial directive to create an intervention that reaches provinces, districts and LLGs and connects disengaged and out-of-school youths to available pathways.
He said the NYES was endorsed by the National Executive Council in April 2025, with NYDA directed to work with provincial governments and DDAs to develop Joint Inception and Implementation Plans.
The registration system links information from LLGs to the provincial level, allowing the Government to better understand youth interests and connect them with existing opportunities in agriculture, fisheries, small and medium enterprises, TVET and tourism.
Division of Community Development Executive Manager (Social Sector) Philbert Vitata described the platform as āa tool for inclusionā, saying it gives disengaged and out-of-school youths a name, a record and a pathway into mainstream development.
The launch also brought together national and provincial agencies, including two senior officials from the Department of National Planning and Monitoring.