Accessing customary land for development in Papua New Guinea continues to be a challenge, while difficulties remain with securing finance against that land. Meanwhile, in New Zealand, Maori landowners are forging ahead with joint ventures, using leases as security and pooling financial resources. Kevin McQuillan investigates how it’s done, in the first of a two-part series.
The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative Report for 2016 has found that improvements are being made to registry and payment systems, but more needs to be done. It notes that budgeting to government revenues remains difficult because of the industry’s volatility and the relatively small number of companies paying full tax.
Stephen Howes, Professor of Economics at ANU’s Crawford School of Public Policy, explains why it is that Pacific economies, unlike other developing economies, are so expensive.
The Governor of the Bank of Papua New Guinea has called for a national plan to make the country self-sufficient in food production, with capacity for export. Loi Bakani outlined his proposal at last month’s National Planning Consultative Summit in Lae.
The ratings agency Moody’s has affirmed Papua New Guinea’s B2 rating, but downgraded it from ‘negative from stable’, citing higher government liquidity risks, increased gross borrowing requirements and limited funding sources. It points to a growing reliance on short-term debt.
The Papua New Guinea government has set up a new authority to oversee the restoration of services and infrastructure, following the February 26 earthquake. As humanitarian relief work continues, analysts expect GDP to fall slightly.
Given that there is no investment currently, what is needed to get Australian institutional investors involved in Papua New Guinea? Stephen Nash, former Chief Investment Officer for Nambawan Super, examines one possible initiative: risk sharing.
The Mineral Resources Development Company (MRDC) was formed in 1975 and is as old as Papua New Guinea itself. Chief Executive Augustine Mano tells Business Advantage PNG that the enterprise has a wide mandate.
There are many pitfalls for the unwary when dealing with other countries’ money says Stephen Massa, Head of the PNG Office for law firm Dentons.
Work at the Misima gold project has commenced, with Kingston Resources planning to extend the current resource and develop new mining areas. Kingston Resources Managing Director, Andrew Corbett, tells Business Advantage PNG he expects drilling programs to commence in April.