Tourism, agri way forward for EHP: Minister

Tourism and agriculture is the way forward for Eastern Highlands Province.

Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Emil Tammur, pledged to promote the province at the recent 2018 Goroka Show.

Minister Tammur opened the 62nd Annual Goroka Show on Saturday in front of thousands of people, including 150 cultural groups from across PNG and more than 1,000 tourists.

He said we have the right to determine what sort of economic developments we want for ourselves on our land, and we must use these birthrights to embrace tourism and agriculture developments as real sustainable industries.

“Gold, kopa ba pinis. Ol ba wokim ol maining, em bai pinis. Tasol turism na agrikalsa em bai stap,” he said.

“Bikos mani yumi kisim lo agrikalsa na turism, em bai go daun stret lo ol hauslain blo yumi.

“Ol i baim kaving, ol i visitim yumi, em i go steret lo ai dua so that yumi ken baim liklik kaikai na sapotim ol femli blo yumi.

“Ol maining na oil, ges, ol disla, em ol bikman tasol ol i holim mani.”

Minister Tammur said unlike many other countries in the world, we are a unique nation of 850-plus languages and over 1000 different tribes and cultures but more importantly, we own 80 percent of the land as individuals, clans and tribes.

Meantime, Tammur said his Ministry is working on a policy to submit to Parliament for the Government to fund major cultural festivals through the national budget.

(Minister Emil Tammur with Mt Hagen dancers)

Author: 
Carmella Gware