The Somare Institute of Leadership and Governance (SILAG) and the Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signifying the start of a partnership in delivering public service training programs to the staff of PMGH. This partnership aims to enhance, promote and develop a mutual dialogue and cooperation between both parties and to deliver the best training for the staff of PMGH and for the staff to be fully equipped with the knowledge they will now acquire through this training programs. The cooperation between both sides will also strengthen in the areas of capacity-building interventions, innovative learning design and delivery, collaborative civil service-learning programs, research and development, technical and financial resource sharing, workshops and seminars hosted at the national and sub-national levels in the common pursuit of the social and economic development of Papua New Guinea. Chief Executive Officer of Port Moresby General Hospital, Dr Paki Molumi, stated that this MOU partnership is important for a Level six (6) National Tertiary, Referral, Research and Teaching hospital as they now progress towards expanding most of their services. The partnership will enable SILAG to provide skill-gap training to the staff of the hospital, especially the middle management. He made mention that the hospital has a five-year corporate plan 2025-2030 that needs to be aligned well with the government’s plan and implemented properly; however, the senior executive staff at the hospital need proper skill gap training to fully implement the corporate plan. “This is the first corporate plan we have had for this hospital, which means over the years we haven’t had a plan put in place and we have been performing without knowing where the job for the day is leading to.” “Therefore, today’s occasion is important; signing up with the key agency, SILAG, who is involved with training public servants, so that we understand that bigger government plans and how that leads to the activities we do each day.” The middle managers of the hospital are doctors who only know how to treat patients, and it is a challenge for them individually when it comes to the management part of the job which includes, project proposals, reports, appraisals and working within the Public Service Management Act 1995. Dr. Molumi also said that the end result of this partnership is to make sure all the managers of the hospital are trained and prepared to contribute effectively and meaningfully to the development of the next five-year corporate plan 2025-2030. Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer of SILAG, Michael Barobe, acknowledged the CEO and the hospital management for having the confidence and trust in SILAG to deliver the public service training programs to the hospital staff. “SILAG’s sole responsibility is to assist with capacity building in the public service and making sure that public servants who undergo training at SILAG are competent when they go back to their jobs.” He said the decision for PMGH to partner with SILAG at this time is crucial and important, as it is now a government policy for those who wish to join the public service to first have a certificate from SILAG. The Institute is training public servants from entry level to executive level. In addition, he stated that SILAG understands that the staff from PMGH are experts in the medical field; however, they need skill-gap training to up-skill them to implement policies and manage the hospital and staff within the public service guidelines, and that is where SILAG will step in to assist. He assured the Port Moresby General Hospital Management that SILAG stands ready to deliver training programs that will be beneficial to the daily operation of the hospital. “The institute will work closely with other government agencies and training partners, with particular emphasis on improving public sector performance at all levels of the government. The institute will competently manage our people, resources, and affairs within robust governance frameworks.” The rejuvenation of PILAG to SILAG will contribute immensely towards the government achieving its strategic priorities under both the PNG Vision 2050 and the Medium-Term Development Strategy. He added that SILAG is ready to deliver training at the workplace.