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PBG Foundation Announces Fully Funded Tanna Feeder Road Humanitarian Initiative

Sydney, Australia. 4 May 2026, 05:00am (AEST)

PBG Foundation Limited, an Australian registered charity and Public Benevolent Institution, is proud to announce the launch of its fully funded Tanna Feeder Road Humanitarian Initiative, supporting improved access for vulnerable communities in Tanna, Vanuatu.

The initiative will support feeder road access serving the Imarapu and Enkatelei communities, where difficult terrain, distance and limited transport access continue to affect everyday life for families, children, elderly persons, persons with disability, low-income households and people living in isolated rural areas.

For many communities in Tanna, road access is not simply an infrastructure issue. It is a humanitarian issue. A passable feeder road can determine whether a mother can reach health care, whether children can attend school safely, whether farmers can bring produce to market, whether elderly people remain connected to services, and whether families can participate in the wider social and economic life of the island.

Across Vanuatu, rural access remains closely connected to poverty reduction, health, education and local economic opportunity. Development reports on Vanuatu’s road sector have recognised that safe and reliable transport access helps poor and rural households reach markets, health services and education, and supports wider participation in community life.

The Tanna Feeder Road Humanitarian Initiative has been designed to deliver practical, direct relief to communities facing hardship and isolation. The project is fully funded by PBG Foundation Limited, with support directed toward the materials required to improve community access sections and strengthen safe, reliable passage for local families.

The Foundation’s Board has approved the initiative as a restricted benevolent relief program directed to people in need, with the dominant purpose being the relief of poverty, hardship, isolation and serious disadvantage affecting remote rural communities in Tanna, including vulnerable women, children, elderly persons, persons with disability and low-income households.

In announcing the initiative, Chairwoman Aruba de Groot-Cham stated “Access is dignity. Access is safety. Access is opportunity. For families living in isolated rural areas, a feeder road can change the rhythm of daily life. It can help children reach school, help the sick reach care, help farmers reach markets, and help vulnerable people remain connected to their community. PBG Foundation is honoured to support the people of Tanna through a fully funded initiative that is practical, compassionate and focused on real humanitarian need.”

The initiative has also received a formal letter of appreciation from Hon. MP Jotham Napat, Member of Parliament for Tanna Constituency, acknowledging the support being extended by PBG Foundation Limited toward the feeder road access initiative serving the Imarapu and Enkatelei communities. The letter recognises that in many parts of Tanna, distance, terrain and limited infrastructure continue to affect daily life, particularly for families seeking access to health services, education and local markets.

Hon. MP Jotham Napat further described the initiative as a thoughtful and structured approach to addressing real needs on the ground, delivered in a practical and respectful way that creates a foundation for positive change beyond the immediate works themselves.

PBG Foundation Limited sees this initiative as part of its broader mission to support community-led resilience across the Pacific. The Foundation recognises that humanitarian relief is not limited to emergency response. It also includes practical interventions that reduce isolation, restore access, strengthen dignity and allow vulnerable communities to participate more fully in daily life.

The Tanna Feeder Road Humanitarian Initiative reflects the Foundation’s belief that lasting humanitarian outcomes are built through respect, partnership and practical action. By improving access for remote communities, the project aims to support not only movement, but connection: connection to health care, education, livelihood, family, market participation and community opportunity.

About PBG Foundation Limited

PBG Foundation Limited is an Australian charity dedicated to advancing long-term, community-led resilience initiatives in regions experiencing poverty, hardship, distress and structural disadvantage. The Foundation is registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission and endorsed as a Public Benevolent Institution and Deductible Gift Recipient. Its work is focused on practical humanitarian outcomes delivered with integrity, transparency, safeguarding and respect for community need.

About the Tanna Feeder Road Humanitarian Initiative

The Tanna Feeder Road Humanitarian Initiative is a fully funded benevolent relief project supporting improved feeder road access for vulnerable rural communities in Tanna, Vanuatu. The initiative is focused on reducing isolation and supporting access to health services, education, markets and essential community participation for families and individuals experiencing hardship and disadvantage.

END OF RELEASE.

For more information, visit: www.pbgphilanthropy.org

PBG Foundation Limited is an Australian-registered Public Benevolent Institution (PBI), governed by the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) and dedicated to alleviating poverty, distress, and disaster-related hardship.

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Kimberly kovacs

Ambassador for Change and Good Will

Kimberly Kovacs serves as Ambassador for Change and Good Will for PBG Foundation, supporting the Foundation’s commitment to community resilience, ethical development, and long-term humanitarian stewardship.

Kim brings more than two decades of executive leadership across technology, capital markets, sustainability, and emerging growth enterprises. Her career has spanned roles as Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, board member, and investor within both public and private companies operating in highly regulated and capital-intensive environments. This experience has shaped a disciplined understanding of governance, accountability, and the structural foundations required to sustain long-term value.

 

Her early executive work included serving as a founding CFO within environmental and technology ventures, where she led venture financing initiatives and navigated complex regulatory frameworks. She subsequently co-founded and led a SaaS-based equity compliance platform acquired by a global software provider, reinforcing her experience in compliance architecture and scalable systems design.

 

Over time, Kim’s leadership extended into venture capital and angel investment networks at a national level, including governance and advisory roles within innovation-driven organisations across diverse U.S. markets. Through these roles, she has supported entrepreneurs, strengthened capital formation pathways, and advanced disciplined growth strategies anchored in transparency, governance, and operational excellence.

More recently, her work has focused on sustainable materials innovation and regenerative production systems. As a leader in fibre-based biomaterials and climate-adaptive industrial hemp initiatives, she has contributed to the development of environmentally responsible alternatives to conventional pulp and single-use plastics. This work reflects a systems-level approach to sustainability: integrating agriculture, manufacturing, and supply chain resilience with measurable environmental outcomes.

Kim’s engagement with PBG Foundation arises from a shared belief that technological capability must be guided by ethical frameworks and institutional discipline. She recognises that infrastructure constraints and resource vulnerability amplify humanitarian risk, and that durable solutions require careful governance, respect for local sovereignty, and long-term stewardship.

As Ambassador, Kim represents the Foundation’s values in public forums, contributes to awareness of responsible philanthropy, and supports engagement with stakeholders who share an interest in sustainable, systems-based development. Her role is honorary, focused on advocacy and principled representation.

 

Her association with PBG Foundation reflects alignment of purpose: that resilience is built through structure, that innovation carries responsibility, and that meaningful impact requires integrity, patience, and institutional clarity.

Dr Regina Crameri

Director

Dr Regina Crameri brings decades of experience across science, government, defence, and institutional leadership to her role as Director of PBG Foundation.

With a background in biomedical science and applied research, Regina’s early career involved academic and research appointments in Australia and internationally. This foundation led into senior roles within Australia’s defence, innovation, and research ecosystems; environments characterised by public accountability, complex governance, and long-term national interest.

Over time, Regina’s work expanded from research into the design and stewardship of large, multi-stakeholder programs. She has worked closely with government, industry, universities, and international partners in areas including health, critical technologies, and capability development, where alignment between policy intent, organisational structure, and delivery is essential.

Regina has also held numerous board and advisory positions, contributing to governance, risk management, and institutional resilience across public, not-for-profit, and sector-based organisations. Her leadership style is grounded in realism: an understanding of how institutions function in practice, where misalignment erodes outcomes, and how long-term value is sustained through disciplined oversight.

As Director of PBG Foundation, Regina oversees operational delivery, strategic development, and program integrity. She ensures the Foundation’s humanitarian work is not only compassionate, but effective; guided by evidence, accountability, and a clear understanding of how complex systems behave over time.

Her role is central to translating PBG Foundation’s values into action: ensuring that ambition is matched with capability, and that every initiative is delivered with care, credibility, and respect for the communities it serves.

Aruba de Groot-Cham

Chairwoman & Director

Aruba de Groot-Cham’s work is grounded in the long-term stewardship of institutions operating where law, science, governance, and human consequence converge. Her leadership reflects a commitment to building structures that endure ethically, legally, and culturally, beyond the immediacy of individual projects or personalities.

Her professional background spans advanced legal training, biomedical research, and senior oversight roles across philanthropic, advisory, fiduciary, and civil society contexts. With postgraduate qualifications in law and medical science, Aruba has worked extensively in environments where regulatory integrity, scientific discipline, and human outcomes must be held together under sustained pressure. This multidisciplinary foundation has shaped a leadership style defined by rigour, clarity, and respect for consequence.

Aruba’s early professional formation took place within biomedical research, contributing to internationally peer-reviewed work in oncology, lipid science, and infectious disease treatment. This grounding instilled a deep respect for evidence, systems behaviour, and the risks inherent in poorly designed intervention. Her subsequent legal training, including specialist focus in international war crimes, extended this perspective into questions of governance, accountability, and the protection of rights within complex civil and criminal frameworks.

 

In her role as Director and Chairwoman of PBG Foundation, Aruba provides strategic oversight and guardianship of institutional integrity, ensuring that the Foundation’s charitable activities are conducted lawfully, transparently, and in alignment with Australian regulatory standards. Her focus is on governance architecture, compliance discipline, and long-term defensibility, ensuring that PBG Foundation remains resilient, credible, and respectful of local sovereignty and dignity in all jurisdictions in which it operates.

Alongside her philanthropic governance work, Aruba holds leadership roles in national sporting institutions in Vanuatu, including serving as President of the Vanuatu Archery Federation. Through these roles, she supports youth development, cultural continuity, gender equity, and international representation, using sport as a vehicle for discipline, confidence, and community cohesion.

Aruba has lived and worked in the Pacific region for over two decades and is a naturalised citizen of Vanuatu. Her leadership is informed by direct engagement in communities where governance decisions carry immediate and tangible consequences. Accustomed to cross-cultural and multi-jurisdictional environments, she operates with composure across legal systems, institutional cultures, and geopolitical boundaries.

Above all professional roles and institutional appointments, Aruba’s greatest responsibility and source of perspective is her role as a mother to five children: Zsa Zsa, Zelda, Zeus, Zahira, and Zlatan. This lived experience grounds her understanding of stewardship not as an abstract principle, but as an obligation to future generations.

As Chairwoman, Aruba’s contribution to PBG Foundation is defined by attentiveness to what institutions often avoid: time, consequence, and responsibility. Her leadership is anchored in the belief that trust is not asserted, but cultivated; through patient governance, disciplined care, and an unwavering commitment to the long horizon.

Peter Bowman

Founder, Director & Secretary

Peter Bowman is the Founder and Ambassador of PBG Foundation, established to support long-term, community-led development across the Pacific region through the application of Australian standards of governance, accountability, and practical capability.

The Foundation was born from Peter’s conviction that meaningful and lasting change depends on strong systems, ethical frameworks, and respect for local context. Drawing on decades of professional experience across finance, governance, and complex environments, he envisioned an organisation that would prioritise dignity, safety, and resilience over short-term intervention or symbolic aid.

Peter began his career in financial services in 1998 within funds management and institutional finance, working across private banking and advisory settings during periods of significant economic and structural change. Over time, he developed a deep appreciation for the role that sound governance, transparency, and disciplined decision-making play in achieving sustainable outcomes, particularly where resources are scarce and the consequences of failure are felt most acutely.

 

These insights shaped the founding ethos of PBG Foundation. As Director, Peter contributes by articulating the Foundation’s mission, championing ethical and well-governed philanthropy, and supporting constructive engagement with partners, communities, and stakeholders. His role is focused on stewardship of values, long-term vision, and the responsible application of expertise in service of the Foundation’s charitable purpose.

Peter is also recognised internationally as a peace envoy and humanitarian diplomat, and is a holder of a laissez-passer issued by the International Commission for the Protection of Civilians (ICPC). These roles reflect a broader commitment to civilian protection, stability, and principled engagement in complex environments, and align closely with the humanitarian objectives of PBG Foundation.


Through his association with PBG Foundation, Peter seeks to contribute to institutions and initiatives that leave communities stronger than they were found. His work reflects a belief that progress; whether social, institutional, or humanitarian, is built through integrity, restraint, and a willingness to invest in outcomes that endure.