Bougainville Youth Leaders Gather for General Meeting

Chairpersons of District and Urban Youth Associations from across the Autonomous Region of Bougainville convened at Tubiana Catholic Mission Station for a General Meeting organized by the Bougainville Youth Federation (BYF).

The meeting, chaired by BYF President Joseph Jnr. Pais, highlighted the Federation’s recent achievements and featured progress reports from youth association leaders across the region.

One of the key developments discussed was a potential Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Tinputz District Youth Association and a corporate partner to distribute locally produced cooking oil at scale.

In other districts such as Bana and Kunua, youth have leveraged sustainable livelihood projects to generate capital and establish Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), becoming key service providers within their communities.

"I am proud to have served the youth of Bougainville during my tenure as Chairman,” said Mr. Pais. “Our strengthened youth network has increased young people's involvement in Bougainville’s economic development, particularly through agriculture.”

Bougainville's registered youth associations have received capacity-building support from various development partners, including Bougainville Youth in Agriculture, the Australian Government through the Bougainville Partnership, New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, UNFPA, UN Women, World Vision, Care International, and Target Training.

Among those in attendance were Bougainville Youth Initiative (BYI) Manager Isabel Koredong and MERLA Coordinator Melissa Brosnan, both from the Bougainville Partnership, along with Gwen Kauva, Regional Officer from the Department of Community Development.

According to Ms. Koredong, BYF is entering a transitional phase. As a civil society organization, its management will shift from the Bougainville Partnership to independent operation.

To support this transition, BYF is launching a data collection drive in collaboration with the Bougainville Partnership. The initiative aims to update youth data records and encourage broader, more inclusive participation from young people across the region.