Rabaul District in the East New Britain Province is ready and set to roll out their Festive Season Operations. The operation will be conducted for 14 days from 22 Dec, 2023 to the 4th of Jan, 2024, in all of Rabaul’s four local level governments (LLGs) to ensure the safety and security of its residents and visitors during the holiday and maintaining law and order. Plans for the Festive Operations were laid out by Rabaul District Acting Administrator Freddy Lemeki. The key focus of the Festive Operations will include normal policing, awareness, mediations and monitoring the Peace Process Agreement between…
Author: Helen-Jennifer BUBUWAU
Western Highlands Province (WHP) will be one of the first provinces in the country, to improve water at selected rural markets across the province made possible through the PNG-Australia Partnership. This Water Security Project will be piloted from 2023, starting off in WHP this year, followed by East Sepik & Morobe Provinces next year, 2024. Access to reliable and clean water sources is still a challenge in Papua New Guinea and is also a key development and climate change policy priority for Australia. What this project will do is provide support for the provincial government to strengthen their governance systems…
Prime Minister James Marape has assured Australia that despite the challenges posed by the falling kina value against the US Dollar, his government has tailored the 2024 budget as responsibly as they could, to minimise the need for additional support. This is the assurance PM Marape gave when he met with the Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers in Canberra. During this meeting, PM Marape also conveyed his heartfelt appreciation to the people and government of Australia, for their continued budget support to Papua New Guinea. Marape clarified to the Treasurer Chalmers that going forward, any requests for budget support or loans…
8 young Papua New Guinea women have graduated as ‘Officers of the Watch’ after they successfully completed the Women in Maritime Program; a partnership between Pacific Towing (PacTow), the Australian Government, Consort Express Lines & Swire Shipping. The women, who are all cadets of PacTow, represent the second and third intakes of the program who are pursuing a seafaring career. The women graduated in a ceremony that took place aboard Steamships’ pleasure cruiser ‘Moresby Chief’ on Fairfax Harbour, where the Australian High Commission’s Minister Counsellor, Penny Morton, Australia Awards PNG Program Director, Rebecca Gitsham, Swire Shipping General Manager – Pacific,…
“Papua New Guineans and businesses houses in the country need to brace themselves for tough times ahead.” This is the alarming warning from Opposition Leader Joseph Lelang, in an address to citizens on the floor of Parliament. He said he sees that the Government will not be easing off on hefty borrowing. Adding to this worrying situation is the increasing stock of public debt, no solutions to inflation and shortages of foreign exchanges. Lelang stated that the Government’s promise of securing the future of the country over the medium term through the capital investment budget, is farfetched. “The MTDP IV…
Artisans from Goroka and Madang, are coming together in an ongoing exchange program, in Madang Town. The man behind this initiative is Mr. Robert Banasi; a renowned Madang artist and community leader. Mr. Banasi told PNG HAUSBUNG that during this year’s annual Goroka Show in Eastern Highlands Province, he was fortunate enough to send a couple of Madang artists to display and sell their art. This is where the idea for the exchange program was born. “These Artisans have a hard life with little opportunities. On a good day, they may make about K10 or K20 from the sale of…
Prime Minister James Marape is set to sign a Framework Agreement for Closer Security Relations between Australia & Papua New Guinea. The agreement will come after a bilateral meeting the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at the Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday, December 7, 2023. This landmark agreement, among others, encompasses Australian Federal Police support for the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary, reinforcing mutual security interests in the region. Prime Minister Marape emphasised the strategic importance of this security arrangement for both Papua New Guinea and Australia. “The security arrangement is in the best interest of Papua New Guinea…
France has committed a remarkable ‘country package’ of K344 million, dedicated to preserving nature, forest and mitigating climate impact. This funding was acknowledged by the Prime Minister James Marape when he extended his sincere gratitude to the France President. Papua New Guinea, boasting the world’s third-largest primary rainforest, holds 7 per cent of the planet’s biodiversity. This innovative ‘country package’ represents a groundbreaking financing mechanism arising from an international dialogue seeking to fortify North-South solidarity. Its objectives include: • Achieving 30 per cent protection of land and sea by 2030; • Realising a 25 per cent reduction in deforestation and…
The Kokopo main market was declared the first ‘model healthy marketplace’ in Papua New Guinea recently. This declaration was based upon the World Health Organization’s (WHO) and National Department of Health’s (NDoH) Healthy Island Concept (HIC). The concept of ‘Healthy Islands’ was developed in 1995 during the initial Pacific Health Ministers Meeting on Yanuca Island, Fiji. WHO Representative Nola N’drewei explained that Kokopo market is currently modelled as a healthy marketplace after fulfilling several HIC standards. The standards include water and sanitation, waste management, and general layouts and operations of the market. She applauded the ENB provincial market authority for…
The Festive Season is here but it is business as usual for Bougainville Experience Tours (BET) based out of Kieta in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (AROB). BET is gearing up to host tourists aboard the international vessel True North, who are scheduled to arrive in AROB on the 4th of December 2023. Owner and operator of BET, Mr. Zhon Bosco Miriona told PNG HAUSBUNG they will be assisting an island-hopping trip. “I will get onboard the vessel and we will start our tour from Nissan Island, then over to the Cataracts Islands then finish off at Pokpok Island.” The…