Peceli Naviticoko 
Labasa College, a government-run school, will appoint a chaplain to support the spiritual and social development of its students.
Minister for Education Aseri Radrodro confirmed the initiative as part of the Ministry’s efforts to address social challenges, including school dropouts, drug use, teenage pregnancy, and peer pressure.
Radrodro states that chaplaincy in schools already helps support both teachers and students.
He adds that it is government policy to appoint chaplains in schools and other government institutions, with their salaries funded by the government.
“Government schools, like every other government institution, are responsible for providing these resources to the students. And for other non-government schools, we are making cost-sharing arrangements for the schools and the churches and the respective religious bodies to share the cost of accessing these religious leaders in the school.”
Labasa College, a boarding school, accommodates students from Cakaudrove, Bua, and Macuata in Vanua Levu.
In the past two years, Labasa College Hostel students have been holding church services on campus instead of attending their respective churches in town as they did before.
