80 Participants from nursing colleges and community health workers’ schools around the country attended a week long training for health professional educators in port Moresby recently. Participants from 15 nursing and 17 CHW schools were introduced to the Continuing Professional Development Program which aims to equip educators with skills to be able teach the new curriculums and be able develop curriculums in the future. The training was a joint effort of the National Department of Health, Department of Higher Education Science and Technology, WHO Collaborating Centre for Nursing , Midwifery and Development and the Australian Government through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The project began in 2021 and is managed by the National Department of Health with financial support coming from the Australia Government through WHO CCT University of Technology, Sydney. Director for World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre, Professor Michelle Ramsey said this is part of the project, Evidence-based Curriculum Development and Implementation of National Curricular for Diploma of General Nursing and Certificate for Community Health Workers with the aim is to Strengthen72% of the Health Workforce in Papua New Guinea. The CPDP, also known as the Fast Track Project, aims to provide Recognition of Prior Learning into academic programs that will be hopefully developed in partnership with the University of PNG. The programs provisionally called: Bachelor of Health Professional Education and Graduate Diploma of Health Professional Education will enable the participants to increase their knowledge, skills and competency as teachers of health professionals. The CPD program outlined at this training will form part of that academic award once it is approved. Professor Ramsey also said that there are talks being held with relevant authorities and partners, including University of Papua New Guinea to offer these needed programs. Those who have begun the CPDP at this workshop will get a certificate at the end of the workshop and proposed qualification after two years if they continue and complete all the work based assessments in the program. Meanwhile, NDOH human resource technical advisor Mary Kililo said this training is preparing the participants to be able to teach the new curriculums which are due for delivery in 2024. “I’m happy that this review has been done, paving a way for upgrading in future of our programs to degree levels.’’ “This is also helping us to look at all the other health training programs which could come under the same framework, but from the specificity of their own programs.” Kililo said the reviewed curriculums are divided into four phases and the last of which is on implementation which will require mobilisation of resources. She added that the new curriculum will be taught from next year.