Prime Minister (PM) James Marape has welcomed major progress in strategic cooperation between Papua New Guinea (PNG) and France following high-level discussions, where the redevelopment of the Rabaul Port was one of the agendas.

The discussions were held on Tuesday, 19th May, in Paris with officials from Agence Française de Développement (AFD), French Government representatives, and European development partners.

The discussions focused on several key areas of cooperation, including:

redevelopment of the Port of Rabaul,

renewable energy partnerships,

climate and biodiversity conservation,

green finance,

and future economic cooperation between Papua New Guinea and France.

Prime Minister Marape thanked France, AFD, the European Union and the European Investment Bank for their growing partnership with Papua New Guinea.

“We came here not to ask for anything, but to say thank you for your partnership with Papua New Guinea,” Prime Minister Marape said.

“We appreciate the work France and AFD are doing in our country, particularly in helping us build infrastructure, protect biodiversity, transition towards clean energy, and create a better future for our people and our planet.”

Prime Minister Marape said one of the major outcomes of the meeting was confirmation that financing negotiations for the redevelopment of the Rabaul Port in East New Britain province, were now nearing completion.

The Prime Minister said the project had recently received National Executive Council (NEC) approval and was expected to move towards signing in the coming weeks.