Censorship Ambassadors Schools Program

Monday, 5 August 2024, 4:03 pm

Censorship Office Chief Censor, Jim Abani at the launch of the Censorship Ambassadors Schools Program. (NBC Tribe FM: Maureen Orea)

The Censorship Ambassador School Program [CASP] is a Behavior Change Intervention Program that was launched on July 30th.

It was initiated in 2021 by the Office of Censorship through its Awareness & Publicity Branch under the Strategic Policy & Coordination Division.

The program emerged from a series of general school awareness programs conducted by the office since 2014. These programs aimed to educate students about the Office's role, functions, and Papua New Guinea's censorship practices, specifically moral censorship.

In 2018, a nationwide school awareness program reached over 56,000 students across selected provinces.  This program highlighted the need for a more focused approach, leading to the development of the CASP program.

Under the program, the selected student leaders become the voice of censorship at their respective schools in the Province.

Censorship Office Chief Censor, Jim Abani said “It was specifically designed to target secondary school leaders from Grades 9 to 12. The student leaders were identified by Guidance Teachers from respective schools based on the quality of leadership shown by the student leaders.  

"The initiative we took was to train student leaders so they can be the ambassadors in their schools to inform or train their peer groups and fellow students so when grades 10 and 12 leave school, grades 9 and 11 will pick up and train the next upcoming students. It’s about sustaining the censorship role in the schools which places the significance of the censorship ambassador program.”

Mr. Abani says, the teachings are based on the six core value statements which are commitment, professionalism, savings, integrity, ethics and gender equality or social inclusion.

He acknowledged the Department of Education for their support to partner with censorship office to conduct awareness in various schools in the country.

“Young people are the assets for the future, and if we have to mold them now, they will become better citizens,” said Abani.

The office of censorship continues to strengthen and extend its awareness advocacy program.