MTS Foundation Charity - Papua New Guinea

Panoramic View from Health Centre to OIC House


THE HAGAHAI HISTORY Almost 20 years ago, the late Dr Carol Jenkins became involved with a group of people located on the border of the East Sepik, Enga, Western Highlands and Madang at a village called Yilu. Dr Jenkins is a Physical Anthropologist who at the time worked with the Institute of Medical Research (IMR) at Goroka, she became interested in the people because they were amongst the last tribal groupcontacted after Independence in 1975. Carol was instrumental in establishing an elementary school which was staffed by Peace Corp volunteers and one of the students was Benjamin Ngagan. The name "Hagahai" was given to the people to identify them as a group keeping in mind they had their own language, one of 830 recorded languages in PNG, since then the name "Hagahai" has stuck and the centre was relocated to Mamuse which was more centrally located and an aistrip was built which is served primarily by Mission Aviation Fellowship from Mt Hagen and Island Airways in Madang. When Dr Jenkins left PNG to work in Bangladesh, Sir Peter Barter, Chairman of MTS and the Melanesian Foundation was charged with the responsibility in looking after the Hagahai people and it was Sir Peter who envouraged Benjamin to complete his studies through Community, High School then onto Sogeri National High and ultimately the Goroka School of Nursing where he graduated in 2002. Sadly, Dr Carol Jenkins passed away in 2007 after a battle of Cancer. Benjamin was flown to Port Moresby to attend the memorial service.
BENJAMIN NGANGAN When Benjamin graduated as a Nurse, he immediately returned to Mamuse and began to look after the Hagahai people with assistance and support of the Baptist Health Service in Mt Hagen. Mt Hagen is close to Mamuse than Madang. The Melanesian Foundation installed a Health Radio, then a Lucas Saw Mill which was inadvertently dropped off in the wrong location and it took 2 years for it to be stripped down and carried to Mamuse. The people under the guidance of Benajmin have now milled a great quantity of timber sufficient to construct a Health Centre. When Sir Peter, was Health Minister he arranged for K250,000 to be allocated to the Baptist Health Services to purchase material to build a permanent Health Centre. The pictures show the initial aid post built by Benjamin and the Hagahai people, then the finished Health Centre which was completed in Jul 2008 ahead of schedule. The funding also covered the cost of a house for the Officer in Charge, a generator, refrigeration and other furniture and equipment necessary for the Health Centre to operate effectively.
FUTURE OF THE HAGAHAI It is easy to write a brief background, it is much harder for Benjamin to have disciplined himself to take on challenges taking him from the "stone age" not only in succeeding in his academic achievments, but in making the effort to return to his own people in one of the most remotest places in the world, to construct the Health Centre and to deliver health services to his own people. The Melanesian Foundation is proud to have played a role in helping the Hagahai people. The picture on the left shows Benjamin with his wife and baby in their new house at what is now known as the Carol Jenkins Memorial Health Centre.
HAGAHAI COMMUNITY SCHOOL One of the pictures shows the bush material classroom currently being used. The Madang Provincial Government has funded a further K200,000 to construct new classrooms and houses for the teachers so that in the near future the Hagahai people will have a permanent classroom. What can you do to help the Hagahai people. They need basic furniture for the classrooms, books, sports equipment beds for the health centre, water tanks and funds to establish a scholarship so that Hagahai people can access tertiary and vocational education.
WARNING In recent months an NGO has been established under the name of Hagahai Development Association. The director of this association has claimed he represents AusAID, NZAid, JICA - this is not true. He has asked the people to provide him money so he can do what Benjamin has already achieved and intends to achieve. Do not be fooled in the event you are contacted by this organisation!