PNGBLOGS

by PHILIP WEN PORT MORESBY: Barely a five-minute drive from the US$50 million conference venue for the just-concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Papua New Guinea's capital, a makeshift squatter settlement is tucked away from visiting world leaders. The Wanigela settlement in Port Moresby looks out directly over APEC Haus, but might as well be a world away. With the South Pacific nation's rainy season looming, Wanigela's thousands of residents are packed together in overcrowded and dilapidated dwellings with no sanitation and unreliable electricity supplies. For all the hope and promise the APEC summit would put PNG on the world stage – and attract investment that will translate into jobs and infrastructure – many are questioning how such an international event will benefit their everyday lives. "The government says APEC is going to improve our lives, but I don’t know, because our politics is not trustworthy," said Bra

by CYRIL GARE One of the greatest challenges for our new first time politicians is to acquaint themselves with and understand the country’s foreign policy among others. It is even challenging for a first-time Minister. In many democracies in the world, a first-time politician does not become a Minister immediately. The reason is obvious. He or she must first understudy and learn the trade skills of the game before taking on a ministerial responsibility in Government. Last week, we boasted about the launch of PNG’s first ever National Trade Policy (NTP). In time, many Papua New Guineans including myself will be able to read and understand the NTP from an available copy. For now, let’s just deduce from information provided in media reports that the NTP now “gives an upper hand to negotiate trade with its partners”. In essence, trade involves supply and demand; i) we supply others with what they do not have, and ii) in reciprocate buy from them what we do not have such as medicine an

by BERNADETTE W. WINGERE When the RD Tuna Canners Corporation first set foot in Madang in 1997, the Papua New Guinea government had envisioned that the company would create employments, landowners would get royalties, the spin of businesses will be distributed to the surrounding communities and as a result it will boost the economy and vital service delivery in the country. However, after 18 years of sucking all the resources in PNG soils, the innocent Pilipino girl has grew into a matu (leader) of businesses in the country. First it came as a RD Tuna canner, now she has her sister company RD Fishing PNG Limited and other small contractors from Philippines and they also have great influence in PNG politics and economic systems as well. The company now owns 12 fishing vessels, 7 fishing carriers and it employs more than 3000 people whom she does not see as her strong workforce or the backbone of the company but rather her slaves. During her establishment, the aim was to produce qua