As Papua New Guinea’s business community continues to face foreign exchange shortages, ANZ Bank has called for a relaxation of the enforced trading band for the kina. Meanwhile, analysts say the kina is facing further downward pressure from the US dollar.
The completion of the Kulum Flyover project proved that Papua New Guinea was capable of delivering significant road infrastructure developments at an international standard under tight time constraints. Lead contractor, New Zealand’s Hawkins Group, executed a project that provided a number of lessons for infrastructure developments in the future.
A shift in priorities continues at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) with the recently named PNG School of Business and Public Policy established to improve the performance of the public service sector in the country as part of the Pacific Leadership and Governance Precinct.
Satellite-enabled phone and data services have often been considered a technology of last resort, due to relatively high costs and quality constraints. However, Dutch company O3b is pioneering the next generation of cheaper, more reliable satellite communications in Papua New Guinea and the Pacific—good news for a region where getting connected can be a major challenge.
Papua New Guinea has the perfect climate for solar, and is the key to achieving an ambitious government plan to bring electricity to the 70 per cent of Papua New Guineans who currently don’t have access by 2030, according to Rick Hooper, Chief Executive Officer of Sydney-based solar company, Barefoot Power.
Major road works in Papua New Guinea are now outsourced to the private sector, under a design-and-build model. The result, says the Secretary of the Works Department David Wereh, is improved performance.
Maersk Line has appointed Anthony Randell as its new Country Manager for Australia and Papua New Guinea. He spoke to Business Advantage PNG about the next phase of the shipping giant’s involvement in PNG.
A decision on who will build a second K300 million berth at the Port of Lae is expected by the end of 2015 and construction due to commence in 2016, according to PNG Ports’ Chief Executive Officer, Stanley Alphonse. A new industrial park and an international operator for the port is also on the cards.
The CEO of Telikom PNG predicts all Papua New Guinea will be able to connect to the Internet within two years. In a wide-ranging review of PNG’s telecommunications industry, Michael Donnelly canvasses lower prices, new investment, takeovers and the impact of competition policy.
Forty years ago this week, Sean Dorney was one of the journalists on the spot for Papua New Guinea’s declaration of Independence. He covered it for the country’s National Broadcasting Commission and later spent 17 years in PNG as an ABC correspondent. He reflects on PNG’s journey as an independent nation.