SME THROUGH CHURHCES; CATALYST FOR GROWTH OF PNG ECONOMY

This week, I had a week long training at Western Highlands Province partnering with PNG UNION MISSION OF SDA and WESTERN HIGHLANDS SDA MISSION. The Aim of the Church is to partner with the Government to encourage and also motivate Church Members and others to go into formal businesses registered with IPA AND IRC.

In the past, almost all churches have requested and asked from their church members to pay offerings, tithes and other contributions without knowing how the church members and their congregations would find money to assist in the church obligations. 

This will not be the same again after we have started partnering with the SDA MISSION to role out the SME Financial LITERACY trainings all throughout the country and we started it at Western Highlands Mission at TOKPA SDA church with more than 300 attendees. The attendees travelled as far as Kompiam in Enga, Hela, Jiwaka and some from PNG BIBLE CHURCH in the borders of Western Highlands and Madang.

During the trainings, the Stewardship Department of the SDA church have launched an HONEY BEE project to assist all church members make money. All church members were encouraged to build and look after honey BEE hives, extract the honey and send the edible honey to their church pastors from respective local churches.The church pastors will then advance to Sending the honey to WESTERN HIGHLANDS MISSION which will then sell the honey to potential buyers. 10% of every sale will be kept as tithes and rest of the money will be given back to the honey bee farmers. 

The above is just another project initiated by the Western Highlands Mission Stewardship office. More projects of such will also be launched to help church members make money. 

Having said that, I was amazed by the project, as it is one of our way we can encourage our people to go into SME BUSINESSES. THE Bible also encourages people to do businesses. Lazy people will perish but the strongest will strive. Government has put money into the banks so that we individuals can work hard to be part of it and access the funds available. 

All churches in the country, including CATHOLICS, LUTHERANS, APOSTOLIC CHURCHES, ETC must follow the example of the SDA church and encourage and Empower its members to go into SME businesses. You will not only make money for them but will also help to build your church networks through offerings and tithes, the governement will make money through tax, the society and group will have money to help themselves in social obligations, families will have food in the table and will send their kids to school. 

It is now time for the Government to work closely with the Churches to encourage and empower the church members to participate in SME businesses so that we can achieve our vision to have 500,000 SME businesses registered by 2030. 

More than million of Papua New Guineans are already doing informal Businesses. We only need to encourage and help them to formalize their businesses. ONE WAY OF DOING THIS IS THROUGH CHURCHES WHICH HAVE CONNECTIONS RIGHT INTO THE RURAL AREAS WHERE GOVERNMENT SERVICES ARE UNREACHABLE. 

MY TEAM WILL STILL MOVE WITH THE CHURCHES TO ENCOURAGE AND MOTIVATE POTENTIAL PAPUA NEW GUINEANS TO GO INTO FORMAL BUSINESSES.

With this, Me and Ezra Kelly would like to take this time to Appreciate the Invaluable Assistance from Pastor Leighton Gimiho Kasimo from WH MISSION and Pastor Andrew Opis from LAE UNION SDA MISSION.

TOGETHER WE CAN.....

#PNGSME 

#POWERING_POTENTIALS

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