Seminar Series: Abstract

The University of Papua New Guinea: Past, Present and Future Contributions to Nation-Building
Professor Maev O’Collins, Visiting Fellow, Department of Political and Social Change, ANU

This interactive talk will be a reflection on the challenges which have confronted the University of Papua New Guinea since its inception in 1966 and the way in which this institution and its staff and students have met these challenges. At various times, in the years before and after Independence, the University has been the subject of government and university reports and academic research. Former staff and students have also written about the way in which political, financial and administrative realities influenced what could or could not be achieved at particular periods during the past 42 years. As a member of the university community from 1972-1989, and during many visits since that time, with my last visit at the end of April 2008, I have been able to observe at first hand the way in which the University has weathered political, financial and administrative storms, and continued with its fundamental task of nation-building.