Bittersweet is how Hallilah Nakumai sums up life in Dandan village on the east coast of Papua New Guinea’s main island, where she grew up. It was a childhood spent canoeing, fishing, weaving grass skirts and colourful bags, gardening, clearing bushes and learning about the ceremonies of her culture.
But the realities of her remote, rural surroundings in the flood-prone hinterland of the mighty Sepik River were harsh. It is what motivated her to work to improve the livelihoods of people in her village.
Many rural communities in Small Island Developing States (SIDS), like Papua New Guinea, are increasingly impacted by extreme weather as a result of climate change. These island states also face geographic limitations in terms of access and trade of goods and food and generally overly rely on imports.
FAO and the European Union (EU) have a particular focus on supporting SIDS in the face of these complex challenges. Giving Hallilah and her community the backing she needed after she returned to her village is just one effective example of how that’s being done.
Hallilah’s journey toward leadership
Hallilah’s village is 6 kilometres away from the nearest road. Therefore, the cocoa, fish and vanilla produced in the village would only reach the market late after a long walk. “Families can only buy a few basic needs and find it hard to support their children's education,” tells Hallilah.
The local primary school was also a long walk, 2.5 hours away, and many of the other village children dropped out as a result. But Hallilah’s parents took her schooling very seriously, helping set her on a path to university studies and a leadership role in the community.
“My parents weren’t just concerned about my or my siblings’ education, they actually took action,” cultivating gardens and washing sago, a starch and staple food in this region, to pay the school fees. They also “worked with us when we came back from school with test topics or assignments to do and gave us smart ideas to tackle them.”
The family’s sacrifices and determination paid off. In a rare opportunity for a young woman from her village, Hallilah packed her bags first for boarding school and then for a four-year bachelor’s degree course on Sustainable Tropical Agriculture at the Papua New Guinea University of Natural Resources.
She took away invaluable agricultural expertise, diving deep into plant and animal breeding techniques, biotechnology, agribusiness and entrepreneurship.
Among the other important things university taught her were also “how to take charge of your learning, become a disciplined, time management whiz, become a pro at navigating tough conversations, seek help, strengthen your integrity and gain perseverance.”
