Papua New Guinea midwives perspectives of the effect of a targeted village birth attendant education program

•The need for proper toilets for waste disposal, putting windows in houses for fresh air, building dish racks to store utensils, and keeping the environment clean.•Addressing the paucity of clinical resources, such as birthing kits, for the VBAs to continue clean birthing practice during emergencies and for stimulated learning, textbooks and computers to access data.•Hands-on practice and case studies in the hospital and community.•Need to fund VBA salaries, patient transport and mobile phones services.