NABIRE – The Black Pearl Papua Foundation (Yayasan Mutiara Hitam Papua), together with the Central Papua Provincial Office of Education and Culture, opened a Training of Trainers (ToT) on Thursday (October 1, 2026) for tutors who will train 90 English teachers in Nabire, Paniai, and Mimika regencies. The activity is a concrete step in support of the vision of Central Papua Governor Meki Nawipa, S.H., which places education at the top of the province’s development priorities.

The ToT is the preparatory stage of the 2026 English Language Capacity Building Program for Teachers in Nabire, Paniai, and Mimika regencies. The opening ceremony was held online via Zoom Meeting at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Indonesia Time (WIT), beginning with the singing of the national anthem, Indonesia Raya, and a prayer led by Lina of BPEC–Black Pearl Papua Foundation.

The training was officially opened by Yuly Yasmin Tecuari, S.Si., M.M., Head of the Data and Information Section in the Division of Education Data and Financing Management at the Central Papua Provincial Office of Education and Culture, representing the Acting Head of the Office.

In her remarks, Yuly stressed that the program’s success depends on cooperation from all parties. She said the implementing partner, the tutors, and the English teachers in Nabire, Paniai, and Mimika all play a key role.

The program is in line with the development agenda of Governor Meki Nawipa and Vice Governor Deinas Geley, S.Sos., M.Si. The Central Papua Provincial Government has set education and health as the main priorities of its 2025–2029 development vision, aiming for a more advanced, self-reliant, and competitive Central Papua through stronger human resources.

Since taking office, Governor Meki Nawipa has launched a series of education policies, including free education, the Full-Day School (Sekolah Sepanjang Hari) program, and the recruitment of teachers for frontier, outermost, and disadvantaged (3T) areas.

“Our task today is to lay the foundation of education in Central Papua. The next generation must be prepared through quality education programs,” Governor Meki Nawipa said when launching the Full-Day School program in Nabire in November 2025.

The Black Pearl Papua Foundation thanked the Central Papua Provincial Office of Education and Culture for its trust and support. The foundation sees the program as a demonstration of its commitment to supporting the Governor’s vision and mission, particularly in improving teacher quality and the quality of learning for the children of Central Papua. The Chair of the foundation’s Board of Trustees, Mr. Fred, also delivered remarks online from Australia.

Following the opening, Rode Kafiar, S.Pd.K., M.KP, Supervisor of the Black Pearl Papua Foundation, presented the program orientation session. It covered the target of 90 teachers across the three regencies, as well as the tutors’ roles and responsibilities as mentors.

The ToT runs for three days, October 1–3, 2026, totaling 12 lesson hours. Participants are tutors and instructors from the foundation’s Black Pearl English Academy (BPEA) and Black Pearl English Center (BPEC).

Almost all of the tutors are Indigenous Papuans who graduated from universities in Indonesia and abroad. Their understanding of local culture, languages, and community conditions is expected to help them build close relationships with teachers and deliver learning that fits the Central Papua context.

The tutors are also guided by Teacher Trainer and English Instructor Ketut Sri Handayani, who delivers sessions on methodology and professional teaching, and by Lina of BPEC–Black Pearl Papua Foundation, who leads the session on contextual learning for Central Papua.

On the first day, in addition to the program orientation, tutors learned how to connect English lessons with students’ culture, environment, and daily lives. The second day covered the fundamentals of effective teaching, lesson planning, warmers and fillers, teaching vocabulary and speaking, and teaching methodology.

The third day features microteaching simulations in breakout rooms with direct feedback from the resource persons, as well as guidance on implementing the English for Teachers module. The ToT concludes with a final test, an evaluation, and the announcement of e-certificates for tutors.

After the ToT, the tutors will mentor 90 English teachers from elementary, junior high, and vocational high schools across the three regencies. The main training runs from October 5 to December 16, 2026, totaling 264 lesson hours.

The training will be delivered in a hybrid format, both online and in person. To avoid disrupting teaching hours, tutors will visit teachers directly at their schools on a flexible schedule. The training hours completed are also expected to support teachers in the certification process.

The Black Pearl Papua Foundation affirmed its commitment to remain a partner of the regional government in realizing Governor Meki Nawipa’s vision and mission in education. The foundation believes competent teachers are key to raising a generation of Central Papuans who are intelligent, competitive, and ready to face global challenges.

The foundation hopes the program will continue and reach more teachers in every regency of Central Papua Province.