Papua New Guinea has been ranked fourth from 154 countries who registered for a worldwide online course programme on oil and gas industry fundamentals, according to oil and gas company Total.
Total, in partnership with French Petroleum Institute, offers this Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) programme globally in countries where Total invests in.
It was offered in PNG through Total E&P PNG Ltd in October last year.
According to the company, 24,491 participants registered globally with 523 from PNG.
Total said PNG was ranked fourth in regard to the number of participants.
Nigeria, France and India had the highest numbers ahead of PNG respectively.
Total E&P PNG Ltd director corporate affairs Richard Kassman said the company and the French Institute of Petroleum were impressed with the number of participants from PNG.
The French Petroleum Institute advised that many of the candidates came from a professional background and that made Papua New Guinea different.
To complete the course, a participant was required to spend three hours per week over a four-week period.
Kassman said the cost of connectivity may have been a reason why many participants did not complete the courses.
He said interest in the MOOC was mainly from people in Port Moresby, Lae and Rabaul.
Despite that Kassman said the number of participants who registered indicated a keen interest to learn about the oil and gas industry.
“The number of people that registered was beyond our expectations because MOOC was something new to PNG,” he said.
“Oil and gas is becoming a very large contributor to our economy.
“Therefore, it is in the interest of our people to generally attempt a course like this and learn about the oil and gas industry.
“MOOC offers an opportunity for Papua New Guineans to have an understanding of the world of oil and gas through a structured online course developed internationally.”
Kassman said the MOOC was not something countries did every year but the company would consider whether to run the courses in future.
Total, in partnership with French Petroleum Institute, offers this Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) programme globally in countries where Total invests in.
It was offered in PNG through Total E&P PNG Ltd in October last year.
According to the company, 24,491 participants registered globally with 523 from PNG.
Nigeria, France and India had the highest numbers ahead of PNG respectively.
Total E&P PNG Ltd director corporate affairs Richard Kassman said the company and the French Institute of Petroleum were impressed with the number of participants from PNG.
The French Petroleum Institute advised that many of the candidates came from a professional background and that made Papua New Guinea different.
To complete the course, a participant was required to spend three hours per week over a four-week period.
Kassman said the cost of connectivity may have been a reason why many participants did not complete the courses.
He said interest in the MOOC was mainly from people in Port Moresby, Lae and Rabaul.
Despite that Kassman said the number of participants who registered indicated a keen interest to learn about the oil and gas industry.
“The number of people that registered was beyond our expectations because MOOC was something new to PNG,” he said.
“Oil and gas is becoming a very large contributor to our economy.
“Therefore, it is in the interest of our people to generally attempt a course like this and learn about the oil and gas industry.
“MOOC offers an opportunity for Papua New Guineans to have an understanding of the world of oil and gas through a structured online course developed internationally.”
Kassman said the MOOC was not something countries did every year but the company would consider whether to run the courses in future.