The walk-in winners

On a Saturday evening early in May, the hills of Port Moresby were alive to the sound of music, young people and... chickens. At the Don Bosco Technical School in Papua New Guinea's (PNG) capital city, several hundred young people had gathered for the climax of the Tingim Yut Kompetisen - the 'Thinking about Youth Competition'. But the music, dance, theatre and exhibits did not distract the judges as they deliberated over selecting two dozen winners and almost-winners.

Exhibits at the finals of the Tingim Yut Kompetisen, held on May 7, 2006, in the Don Bosco Technical School, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

credit: World Bank, PNG

The chickens were there in spirit, if not in body. One organiser sighed heavily after viewing the 800-plus entries from predominantly rural youth groups across the mainly rural nation, and reported that most were "to start up chicken farms, chicken farms and more chicken farms!" This is perhaps not surprising, when backyard poultry production is good for income generation and improving protein supplies in areas where the rural market economy needs a boost to rise above subsistence production.

The list of winners was, in fact, far from the 'chicken' monotony the organiser had feared. The project ideas selected - from spice farming for export to community literacy - was as vibrant as the competition climax itself. With the goal to 'find and fund' innovative and sustainable projects set up by young people, the Tingim Yut team had been deluged with entries. Word about the competition had gone out through schools, road shows, shop displays and national and rural radio. As a result, project proposals had poured back in through the branches of a nationwide banking chain which distributed and collected entry forms, overcoming the usual communications challenges in a place where the mail can be slow and costly.

Journeys to success

Not just communications, but travel can also be a challenge in PNG. The competition finalists took it in their stride. The representative of the winning Rena Repa Youth Group from Kagua in the Southern Highlands province left his misty village at 1 a.m. the day before the finals. Walking along mountain paths to the nearest bus stop, he was then taken to an airstrip to catch a plane to Port Moresby's airport, and an overnight rest, before presenting his proposal. His group will rehabilitate land for coffee growing and will teach the community to grow and market it - riding on the growing wave in PNG of direct sales to Western consumers. Another (adult) group of farmers in PNG sells direct to the Starbucks chain in North America, and won the accolade of 'coffee of the month' in Washington DC cafés in April.

The members of the Nalai Cooperative Society in Gloucester, off the south-west coast of West New Britain Island, took the local ferry to another boat, then caught the bus to the airport and flew onwards to the capital. Their project will provide training in cultivation, storage and shipping of cocoa. Other winners included the Simbang Village Coconut Oil Press in Morobe, who sell their products for conventional uses in cooking oil and soap, but also to the emerging market for biofuels for diesel engines and rural electricity; the Kadatalika Fishing Group in Tavui Noi who will invest in new equipment; and Hamaka Parish Yut in Finschaffen who plan to install a rice milling machine.

Not all at the awards ceremony had made long journeys to get there. The Minister of Education, the Cabinet Secretary and the National Ombudsman had not had far to travel, but had given up their day off to the young people, as had representatives of the universities, the agricultural research institute, local businesses and the donor community. The latter two had sponsored the prize packages of up to US$10,000 a winner.

Monitoring and feedback

Each winning group will have its project monitored. Prize money will be paid out in instalments based on performance, over their first year of operation, from Tingim Yut's host organisation, the PNG office of the World Bank. There it is part of the Development Marketplace thrust to stimulate more cooperation between the Bank and community initiatives.

Perhaps it was the theatre and dancing that kept the judges thinking on their feet. Having selected 18 winners on the day, they decided they wanted more winners, and created a category of 'encouragement prizes' for six runners-up - with donors pledging additional prize money on the spot.

The judges too deserved a prize, for smart thinking. Having selected the Hauslain radio station in Goroka, which specialises in community and youth talkback shows, as a winner, they asked all winners to call in regularly to Hauslain with progress reports and urged other young people to also call in and air their views. Instant accountability, instant communication - even the chickens would approve.

Note: further information can be found at www.worldbank.org/png by searching for Tingim Yut.

Article by Gwen Regione