BY NED GAGAHE
Guadalcanal Provincial Government owes Solomon Islands National University (SINU) $8 million in scholarship sponsorship.
This was revealed by Premier Francis Sade at the graduation of Marara Community High School recently.
Sade said when his government assumed power in 2019 the province had already incurred a debt of eight million dollars with SINU which has halted the province’s scholarship programme.
But Sade said his government has already settled five million dollars.
“I wish to reiterate here that Guadalcanal province is committed to clear our dues with SINU.
“When we came in power the province has owed SINU eight million dollars.
“We have managed to settle some of it and at the moment we only have three million dollars that we are yet to settle.
“I called on the national government to continue support us. There was an MOU signed with the Ministry of Mines and Ministry of Finance and Treasury to help us offset our debt with SINU.
“We will start the discussion soon and hopefully by next year 2023 we will resume our scholarship program again.
“That is the commitment we have in terms of providing education for our people.
“With regards to training, we have been highlighting this in the past years, and I wish to reiterate that our current provincial government is still committed and is progressing to clear our dues with SINU and we hope to support 100 Guadalcanal students to graduate from SINU in various field of studies.
“Our provincial government plans are set on to ensure our province prioritize our human resource development through training.
“We need to our students taken up different fields of studies including medical studies like nurses and doctors, engineers, teachers, administrators, trades, Accountants, entrepreneurs and others. The biggest barrier for all of us including our students is, financial support.” Sade said.
