Mama Bank, ITI Join Forces to Back Young PNG Entrepreneurs

A fresh partnership between a leading training institute and a microfinance bank is opening new doors for aspiring young business owners across Papua New Guinea.

International Training Institute (ITI) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Women's Micro Bank, also known as Mama Bank, to help students turn business ideas into reality through funding support, financial skills training and practical space to launch their ventures.

Officials from both organisations described the agreement as different from standard institutional partnerships, pointing out that its central aim is producing actual business owners rather than only preparing graduates for employment.

At the signing event, Women's Micro Bank CEO Gunanidhi Das highlighted the role accessible financial services play in supporting first-time entrepreneurs, adding that such support was essential to growing an entrepreneurial mindset nationwide.

Meanwhile, ITI Chairman and Co-Founder Senthil Kumaran Sentheyval called on students to approach the opportunity with responsibility, telling them that sound business management now would set the stage for long-term success later.

According to ITI, the collaboration is part of a wider push to shape graduates who can do more than fill job vacancies — graduates capable of creating employment and opportunity through their own businesses, feeding directly into PNG's economic growth.

ITI thanked Women's Micro Bank for backing the initiative, calling it a shared commitment to innovation, financial inclusion and investment in Papua New Guinea's future workforce.