WHPG backs grassroots development with K100,000 support to Ramdi Ouknimbo association

A grassroots community association in Mul Baiyer District, Western Highlands Province, has received a K100,000 funding boost from the Western Highlands Provincial Government, reinforcing the province’s push for bottom-up, community-led development.

The funding was presented this week by Western Highlands Governor Wai Rapa to the Ramdi Ouknimbo Community Development Association, an organisation formed in 2024 to address delays in basic government service delivery to its rural community.

Association Chairman Rex Kuni said the group was established out of necessity, after years of limited access to essential services.

“For development to be meaningful, we realised we had to take responsibility ourselves and work together to improve our community,” Kuni said.

He said earlier support of K100,000 from the Mul Baiyer District Development Authority, under Chairman Jacob Kop Maki, had already produced tangible results. The funding enabled the construction of the Munga Concrete Bridge valued at K50,000, the purchase of K30,000 worth of gravel for road improvements, while the remaining K20,000 remains in the association’s account for future projects.

Governor Rapa praised the association’s commitment and positive results, saying government support is best directed to communities that demonstrate initiative and accountability.

“I congratulate you for forming a well-organised association. The little money you received has been put to good use, building a concrete bridge and improving roads,” Rapa said.

“These are the kinds of initiatives I support. My leadership philosophy is bottom-up, not top-down, and it starts with ordinary people in the communities."

With the latest K100,000 funding, the association plans to expand into income-generating projects including piggery, fishery, poultry and small-scale farming to sustain long-term development.

The association focuses on four key areas: village development, social welfare, human resource development and small-to-medium enterprise [SME] growth.

The association represents a community that hosts Paglum Adventist Secondary School, one of Papua New Guinea’s top-performing secondary schools, further underscoring the area’s strong community leadership and development potential.