Links
For a photograph of the last Air Niugini Fokker F28 to leave Cairns, Australia
please visit -- http://www.pngbd.com/photos/showphoto.php?photo=5189
Prime Minister's web site -- http://www.pm.gov.pg/pmsoffice/pmsoffice.nsf
If you are interested in PNG Orchids then I suggest visiting -- http://www.orchidspng.com
-- this is another web site with layout and design Wolfgang H. Bandisch.
The Investment Promotion Authority (IPA) has a web site located at -- http://www.ipa.gov.pg
-- The IPA implements policies and programs aimed at increasing total annual
investments, greater increases in non-mining sector investments and increasing
the level of investments financed by the domestic sector in PNG. It is a statutory
organisation established in 1992 by an Act of Parliament to promote and facilitate
investment in PNG.
The Catholic Church of Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands has a web site
hosted by the Religious Television Association (RTA) of Papua New Guinea PO
Box 7671, Boroko, NCD. -- http://www.catholicpng.org.pg
-- The RTA web site can be found at -- http://www.rtapng.com.pg
A PNG Music Archive can be located at -- http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/carts/contmusic/musicarchive/PNGArchive.html
-- This is hosted on the Southern Cross University web site in Australia.
The South Pacific Tourism Organisation has a web site located at -- http://www.spto.org.
If you want to contact the SPTO then fill out the form at -- http://www.spto.org/contact_form.shtml
PNG Tourism Promotion Web Site
The official website of the Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority
can be found at -- http://www.pngtourism.org.pg
-- If you are interested in Papua New Guinea then this is the web site to
visit at least once before you arrive.
Tourism Sites
Air Niugini -- http://www.airniugini.com.pg
DIVErsion Dive -- http://www.diversionoz.com/en/png.htm
Lonely Planet Website -- http://www.lonelyplanet.com.au/dest/aust/png.htm
Madang Diving -- http://www.madangdiving.org.pg
Melanesian Tourist Services -- http://www.meltours.com
MV Golden Dawn -- http://www.mvgoldendawn.com
Niugini Art -- http://www.global.net.pg/niugini-art
Niugini Diving -- http://www.niuginidiving.com
Tourism Promotion Authority -- http://www.pngtourism.org.pg
Trans Niugini Tours -- http://www.pngtours.com
News Items
Malaria Fund
The Health Department has set up a working group to make sure that a US$20
million funding obtained from the Global Fund will be used properly to control
malaria in the country. One of the priorities of the funding will be to distribute
mosquito nets to every one in the country who lives in malaria prone areas.
The second priority will be the treatment of malaria. About 80 percent of
the funding will be used to buy the nets. The working group will consist of
people from Rotary, AusAID, and the World Health Organisation. An international
accounting firm has been appointed to keep track of the funding.
Forest Depletion
The Minister for Forests has said that the PNG known forest resources may
be exhausted sooner than anticipated. It is estimated that PNG is losing about
120,000 hectares of forests annually through commercial selective logging
and other forms of land use practices. The Minister highlighted the need to
have an adequate reforestation and afforestation program in place.
Saussi Crossing
Temporary repairs have commenced on the Saussi crossing in Madang province
and a temporary crossing has been opened to light traffic. A survey is being
carried out and construction of a permanent bridge should begin next month
using money from the Yumi Yet Bridge programme. The total cost of a new bridge
has been estimated to cost K5.85 million.
Backfired Shooting
It has been alleged that police shot at a lady because her car backfired.
The expatriate woman, believed to be an Australian, was travelling on the
Poreporena freeway when her car or another car backfired. Police fearing that
someone was shooting at them returned a backfire with a gunshot supposedly
hitting the woman in the leg.
Governor General
The Supreme Court has handed down its decision regarding the election of
Sir Pato Kakaraya as Governor General. The Court has declared the election
on the 4th of December last year (2003) null and void. Parliament will now
be recalled to elect a new Governor General. It is hoped that this time correct
procedures are followed by Parliament. This is the second time that this election,
for a Governor General, has been declared null and void.
Parliament is set to be recalled on the 20th of April to elect a Governor
General. This session of parliament is likely to test whether the Somare government
has the numbers to beat a no confidence motion. Up until February the present
Somare government was protected from a vote of no confidence by the constitution
but that has now expired.
Rural Bank MD
The Prime Minister has said that he wants action to be taken against the
suspended Managing Director of the Rural Development Bank. The MD slipped
a nine-millimetre pistol past airport security at Jackson's airport while
on a trip to China as part of an advance party before the PM's official visit
to China. The Police Commissioner has said that the MD will be charged soon.
Alotau Hospital
The land that the Alotau hospital is located on has been gazetted for sale
without the knowledge of the provincial and national authorities. Tenders
for the piece of land the hospital is located on closed last week. The Alotau
General Hospital has taken out a Court Order to halt the sale. The hospital
has recently secured a K10 million funding program through AusAID's PNG Incentive
Fund but this may be in jeopardy if the hospital land is sold. The hospital
was supposed to be the first government-owned public hospital to obtain a
title for the land it was built on. Possessing a title was a prerequisite
to obtaining funding through AusAID.
Last Cairns F28
The Last Air Niugini F28 to fly out of Cairns was given a traditional aviation
send off. Fire tenders sprayed the aircraft with water as it taxied out. The
F28's can no longer fly to Australia because of noise issues that were put
in place a number of years ago. The F28 4000 series had been allowed to fly
to Cairns under special approval gained from a meeting between the Australian
and PNG Prime Ministers. The flights from PNG to Cairns will be flown by an
RJ70 leased from National Jet in Australia until Air Niugini's replacement
aircraft, the Fokker F-100, becomes available. The F100 is only an interim
measure until Air Niugini can purchase a more suitable aircraft. The PNG Business
directory has a picture of the aircraft located at -- http://www.pngbd.com/photos/showphoto.php?photo=5189
Papa - Lealea Road
The road that connects Papa and Lealea in Central Province to Port Moresby
is like many roads in the country very neglected. Many of the people who work
in Port Moresby live in the villages along the road and they are finding it
very difficult and expensive to get to work each day. Villagers from Porebada,
Boera, Papa, Lealea, Kido, Gorohu, Keiva and Gerebaga use the road.
Single Currency
The Prime Minister has said that the idea of a single currency for the Pacific
Islands States was a very complex issue. He said it took Europe 20 to 30 years
to overcome various issues before adopting the Euro.
Michael Nali
MP for Mendi, Michael Nali, has been fount guilty of four counts of misconduct
in office. A leadership tribunal has ruled that his integrity was called into
question and that he used his official position to benefit himself.
Cattle Exports
There will be another export of cattle, the fourth, to the Philippines. Sialum
cattle farmers will export 300 live cattle to this month. The Rural Development
Bank is monitoring the shipment of the animals. The money raised by the sale
will help the farmers pay off their debt they owe to the bank.
A$100 Million Loan
A company, described as an investment bank, being considered to help in obtaining
a A$100 million loan for the PNG government has been revealed to be an Australian
$2 company according to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission
(ASIC) and has only been in operation for two years. It is possible that the
company may not be regulated by the body responsible for the operations of
banks in Australia and it is not listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.
Australian Police
The PNG Police Minister is confident that a resolution to the dispute about
allowing Australian police operate in PNG with immunity will soon be reached.
Corned Beef
The price of corned beef products manufactured by James Barnes went up by
1.4 percent in PNG recently. This is mainly as a result of the 2 percent import
levy imposed by the government during the 2004 budget. James Barnes originally
requested a 1.9 percent increase.
Southern Highlands Jail
The Hawa jail in the Southern Highlands has reopened after being closed for
over two years ago due to a lack of funding. The Porgera Joint Venture has
renovated the jail under the PNG Tax Credit Scheme.
Buimo Jail
Huon Rotary is helping prisoners of the Buimo jail by providing a containerised
library. It is hoped that the library will help to rehabilitate and educate
the inmates. The prison staff and family members will also be able to use
the library.
Seahorses
Dr Mark Baine is interested in seahorse research he can be contacted at the
address below.
Director, Motupore Island Research Centre,
University of Papua New Guinea, PO Box 320,
University 134, National Capital District,
Papua New Guinea
Dear All
I have recently been in contact with Project Seahorse, who are very interested
in seahorse research in PNG. I am currently considering developing a proposal
aimed at filling some of the gaps in knowledge regarding seahorse distribution
and diversity in PNG. Project seahorse have agreed to act as advisors for
any such research, noting that they have little information on PNG.
I would be grateful for any information (observational, hearsay and recorded)
that is out there on seahorses in PNG - species, location etc. It will give
me an idea of what is available and what needs to be addressed. Does anyone
also know of any fisheries (target or incidental) for medicinal or aquaria
markets?
I look forward to receiving some information. Many thanks in advance for
your help.
Best wishes
Mark
Diesel Prices
The price of Diesel has gone up in PNG by 4.9 toea per litre. The estimated
pump price including VAT for diesel should now be around the K1.88 per litre
mark. The price of other petroleum products stays the same as per the last
newsletter. -- http://pnggossip.com/news/g040326.html#fp
Port Moresby Hospital
Thanks to a donation of K32,000 from the New Zealand government a backlog
of more than 1,000 elective surgery patients can now be operated on at the
Port Moresby General Hospital. Two of the four operating theatres have been
without lighting for five years. Elective surgery cases include such cases
as appendix, bladder, kidney stones and lumps.
Tara Spirit
The MV Tara Spirit is set to start servicing the shipping needs of the Gulf
Province after being refloated last month. The ship sank in Port Moresby's
Fairfax Harbour. The ship has been surveyed and approved for duty by officials
of the Transport Department. New navigational aids such as the radar system
and satellite navigation system have been fitted. The Department of Transport
is still to launch an investigation into the sinking of the vessel.
PNG Polls
The registrar of political parties has informed political parties that they
can only endorse one candidate for each seat in an election. Candidates contesting
the elections must be endorsed by a party and not by individual party members.
The National Party has endorsed a candidate for the Anglimp / South Wahgi
seat and some members of the National Party have endorsed another person for
the same seat.
By-Elections
Over 70 people will contest the three vacant National Parliament by-elections.
31 people will contest the Simbu seat. 30 people will contest the Anglimp
/ South Wahgi Seat. Only 15 people will contest the Yangoru-Saussia Open Seat
compared to 32 during the 2002 General Elections.
Markham Bridge
The Japanese Government may be prepared to help with the funding of a new
bridge to replace the Markham Bridge washed away by floods recently. The Japanese
Embassy has paid a visit to Morobe Province to promote the work of its government
in various institutions and communities in the Province.
Telikom PNG
Telikom PNG has invested K34 million in network expansion through one of
its subsidiaries. Pacific Mobile Communications (PMC) is expected to increase
this K34 million investment in the GSM mobile service even further over the
next few years. PMC has finally turned on SMS messaging for the mobile telephone
users charging 30 toea per message. The first messages went through on the
29th of March with the system being officially turned on for the 30th of March.
World War II Bombs
It has been estimated that over 200,000 pounds of unexploded bombs left over
from the Second World War in PNG have been disposed throughout the country
in the past 29 years. The total weight of unexploded bomb recovered so far
would have been enough to decimate a city the size of Port Moresby. It has
also been estimated that there could be as many as 1,000 more bombs yet to
be discovered around the country. The unrecovered bombs are a risk to lives
and property as well as being a security risk. Police have recently recovered
WWII mortars and hand grenades from criminals between Efogi and Edebu in the
Central province.
Oro Province
The Education Secretary is investigating the existence of a "Muslim
School" in the Safia subdistrict of Oro Province. The Secretary, Peter
Baki, has said that PNG is a nation committed to upholding Christian principles
and the existence of a Muslim School was a cause for concern. He also said
that he recognised the rights of individuals to freedom of choice and association,
as enshrined in the PNG Constitution. Michael Pearson, a Teaching Services
Commissioner, said that he believed the school had followed proper procedures
to be registered in PNG.
According to the founder of the new school other schools in the Safia area
have been closed for a long time and the school is helping to fill the void.
The Nursi Muslim Primary School has been built with funds from Port Moresby
and Australia. Classes for grade one to seven began in February tis year.
PNG's In Australia
I haven't heard from my usual PNG contacts in Australia recently but Adrian
Caoimh is attempting to contact all PNG people in Australia. He hopes to form
an association of "Wantoks in Oz". For more information contact
him on the following email address -- mkunji10@scu.edu.au
Yarapos School
The Mercy Sisters Girl's High School located at Yarapos outside Wewak, East
Sepik Province will be upgraded to a secondary school with direct funding
from AusAID through the PNG Incentive Fund. The school will phase out grade
7 and 8 and will start accepting students for grade 11 and 12. Other maintenance
will be carried out thanks to the AusAID funding.
Brothel Raid
Police recently detained over 80 people in a raid on a brothel located opposite
the General Hospital in Port Moresby. Girls as young as 14 and 15 were picked
up in the raid. Those arrested were provided counselling by the National AIDS
Council. Prostitution is seen as the main cause of HIV/AIDS spreading in PNG.
Arafura Games
A rare opportunity has come around for the provincial governments to be able to fly their flags at the Arafura Games in Darwin, Australia next year. The provincial flags will be paraded immediately after the PNG flag during the opening ceremony. There are also provisions for two teams to compete in each sport if enough team members can be found. Over 31 sports have been nominated to play between the 14th and 21st of May 2005.
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