Agriculture improves lifestyles

By Andrea Tagamasau

Places where agricultural activities are dominant show that people’s lifestyles have improved and are better off than places where there is an extractive industry present.

Agriculture is the major industry in Papua New Guinea

This was said by veteran agricultural researcher Dr Michael Bourke when presenting his talk on the role of agriculture in a national economy dominated by gas, petroleum and mineral exports.

Dr Bourke said that with the resource boom in the country agriculture activities have decreased thus resulting in it contributing only 18 percent to the country’s economy. 

“Agricultural activities are estimated to decrease even further to 5 percent or 4 percent in the next ten to twenty years,” said Dr Burke.

Dr Burke said that from his research he has found out that oil palm is the most valuable exporter in the country with its high buying rates however in the rural areas coffee is the most grown cash crop. He said that with most Papua New Guineans living in rural areas their only source of income comes from agricultural activities.

With the bulk of the population being involved in the agriculture sector it benefits both the formal and informal import sectors.

“Agriculture provides most income for rural people whose typical household income is around K4000 to K5000 which is a lot to them,” said Dr Bourke.

In order to provide a good lifestyle for all Papua New Guineans agriculture is a sector where the bulk of the country’s population is engaged in, however only a few of the rural population who have access to roads and other basic infrastructure benefit from this sector.

He reiterated that income mattered and with the good agricultural income that people had negative factors affecting the country such as high child mortality rates would decrease. 

He later concluded that with agriculture, the production of food for sale and the export of cash crops can be associated with the decrease in the rate of child mortality which is solely dependent on one’s income.

Maru empowers ‘small people’

By Isaac Nicholas

COMMERCE and Industry Minister Richard Maru has announced the National Government’s intention to enact in legislation to ensure small to medium businesses are reserved for indigenous Papua New Guinea businesses.

Mr Maru also told Parliament that a “new Papua New Guinea Banking Corporation (PNGBC) will start operating by early next year to cater for small Papua New Guineans”.

Commerce & Industry Minister, Richard Maru

The statement from the Minister of Trade and Industry was a bold statement that got a rousing applause from both the Government and the Opposition, as well as people seated in the public gallery, forcing Speaker Theo Zurenuoc to call everyone to order in the House.

“As of today, 90 percent of all businesses in the formal sector are owned by outsiders. We only own 10 percent. Thirty-seven years after independence our people have been left to pick up the crumbs,” Mr Maru said.

“We sell buai, collect bottles and run second-hand clothing shops when others (foreigners) have taken over all businesses,” he said.

“The new PNGBC is coming back, by February or March we will bring in a PNG Business Empowerment Legislation, a very comprehensive legislation, and I will call on the Opposition for a bi-partisan committee to identify which businesses are for Papua New Guineans where no foreigner will run. 

“Under this legislation, all shops, fast-food and other outlets will be run by Papua New Guineans only. So we are bringing this back and I look forward to your support so that by early next year when the legislation comes, we must pass it.”

Mr Maru said another issue that the legislation will address is the ownership of businesses to ensure that there is a requirement for a Papua New Guinean to own 50 percent of any joint venture company designated by law.

He said as Managing Director of National Development Bank, he initiated and hosted the Indigenous Business Summit in Rabaul last April to bring to the Government’s notice that “enough is enough”. 

“We must take back out birthright and we must take control of our economy,” Mr Maru said.

“I am happy to announce that last Tuesday, the National Executive Council approved a stimulus package and by today you will see the 12-point plan to arrest the situation we face in the country.

“In the budget, we have put K80 million for the National Development Bank in 2013 to make credits available to ordinary Papua New Guineans,” he said.

“In the stimulus package all the interest rates will drop to 6.5 percent and that will mean all commercial banks will be forced to reduce their rates as well to enable more Papua New Guineans to seek loans.”

Mr Maru said all the Members of Parliament will have K1 million as part of their District Services Improvement Program funds to support small people in their respective districts to venture into business.

“In addition, the Somare Government gave K20 million to NDB to start a new micro-finance scheme for NDB. The buildings are up and they have applied for a license and we hope by December or January they will receive their license and start a new PNGBC,” the Minister said.

“We hope that our new bank that will replace PNGBC will start opening its doors in January. We need to reduce the cost of all kinds of bank fees and make funding easily available to all our citizens.

“So this Government is in support to put funding into NDB to start our own bank and we hope that within the next two years we will have a fully fledged commercial bank that Papua New Guineans own.

Pacific-ACP leaders re-engage Fiji

By Gorethy Kenneth

PAPUA New Guinea’s “Melanesian Way” of successfully getting Fiji’s Prime Minister to Port Moresby for the Pacific African Caribbean Pacific (Pacific ACP) meeting has been commended and hailed a success.

The PACP leaders of 14 nations in the Pacific yesterday agreed to re-engage Fiji in the highest level Pacific ACP meetings when it next convenes.

Pacific ACP Leaders in Port Moresby yesterday

PNG also offered yesterday to have the PACP Secretariat in Port Moresby so that issues of trade between ACP-EU countries and the Pacific can be addressed at high levels. Presently PACP has been operating under the Pacific Island Forum in Fiji. PNG has again raised its hand to host the Secretariat.

PACP countries have trade and development agreements with the European Union. 

Fiji was suspended several years ago from participating in ACP meetings despite being a full and active ACP member.

 

PNG as host of this Pacific ACP meeting invited Fiji’s Prime Minister Commodore Bainimarama to attend the meeting, which he accepted.

Prime Minister Bainimarama thanked PNG Prime Minister O’Neill yesterday saying that it was important to attend the meeting because Fiji and PNG were key Pacific economies in the Pacific ACP-EU negotiations, having established Interim Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) to maintain and improve preferences for our main exports and benefit from improved Rules of Origin.

Yesterday, Mr O’Neill was once again a proud leader of PNG for hosting this successful meeting.

“Nevertheless we are gathered here today to discuss Fiji’s future participation at Heads of Government level at our Pacific ACP leaders meetings following its non-participation for reasons we are already familiar with. 

Fiji being a foundation member of the Pacific ACP is a valuable player and I am certain that their return to the fold would strengthen our group’s collective approach to address political, economic, social and environmental issues affecting our region,” he said.

“I am certain that we as member of the PACP, the Pacific chapter can see our way clear to collectively agree in the Pacific Way to allow a Pacific brother that has been out of our system for quite a while to return to our village and be a part of us again.

Mr O’Neill said he personally felt that to remain engaged with Fiji is a very positive step to compliment their existing efforts to return to full parliamentary democracy.