The Central Provincial Government has gone ahead to establish the Central Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) with an interim board and is now poised to deliver change in the Central Province by working with the Central Provincial Government (CPG).
The CCCI received a boost of K200, 000 from Central Governor Rufina Peter at the inaugural CCCI meet and greet at the Hilton Hotel in Port Moresby on Friday 14th July.
The event saw a gathering of people from different sectors in the Central Province as well as Minister for International Trade and Investment Richard Maru, Minister for Mining and Rigo MP Sir Ano Pala, Hiri-Koiari MP Keith Iduhu, elder statesman Sir Moi Avei, Central Provincial Executive Council members, Chairman for SME Corporation John Pora and Dame Josephine Abaijah graced the event with their presence.
CCCI Interim President Linda Paru stated that the CCCI aims to protect and promote the interest of Central CCI members, which will also be a business and investment advisor to the Provincial Government and assist develop Foreign Trade within the Central Province.
“Central Chamber of Commerce and Industry is a provincial chamber will affiliate to PNG Chamber of Commerce and Industry. As mentioned earlier we will have a common objectives with other Chambers like Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Lae Chamber of Commerce and Industry etc. However our unique position is that we are establishing this chamber during the PNG LNG Project and recently announced Papua LNG Project,” Paru said.
She added that this enables members to have greater benefits, have access to resources and capitalize on the opportunities this projects brings to our door.
International Trade and Investment Minister Richard Maru in his address stated that the CCCI was long overdue and encouraged the Central Government to make use of the chamber in collecting revenue for the province.
He also called on the Central Provincial Government to align their goals with the Medium Term Development Four plan of the National Government that was launched recently at the APEC Haus.