Last Friday officially marked 5 years since Port Moresby Nature Park opened its gates to the public and transformed recreational activities for residents in Port Moresby.
The Nature Park was the vision of Governor Powes Parkop, who along with the NCDC Board, made the decision back in 2010 that the then National Capital Botanical Gardens was no longer living up to the expectations and needs of the city and that the site had the potential to be so much more, not only for residents but also as a tourism attraction to the region.
Following the introduction of a new management team with many years of international experience operating similar attractions overseas, NCDC’s City Manager officially launched Port Moresby Nature Park on 16 June, 2012.
The Nature Park is a registered charity that receives funding support via NCDC, corporate sponsorships and visitation. The Park’s vision is to be PNG’s premier recreational attraction inspiring in others the guardianship of PNG’s unique natural environment.
The park is operated under an independent board nominated equally by NCDC and POM Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Within the five years of operating, the Port Moresby Nature Park had become another success story of NCDC’s initiatives, praised for its strong public/private sector collaboration, strong experienced leadership and well thought out business and masterplan models.
The Park currently has over 300 animals in its collection and manages a number of conservation, breeding and research programs. In addition, the Park has stayed true to its foundation with spectacular gardens comprising of hundreds of plant species, including orchids as well as introducing many cultural pieces from across the country, celebrating the diversity of culture across PNG and the important connections that culture has with PNG’s natural environment.
The Nature Park is the only internationally endorsed zoological facility in PNG with the Park holding membership with the Zoo and Aquarium Association of Australasia and membership with the Australasian Society of Zoos Keepers.
The Park has also won international awards acknowledging its work in ensuring international standards of animal welfare management.
The Park has grown in visitation from 85,000 in 2012 to a projected 130,000 visitors that will pass through by the end of 2017.
Today, the Nature Park is almost unrecognisable from the old Botanical Gardens with a number of major developments taking place including new entries, a café and souvenir shop, a nature-play playground, a number of new and refurbished animal exhibits, new pathways, public amenities and new picnic areas.
The Nature Park is also leading the way school excursion programs have taught over 60,000 school students to date, with programs that support the PNG curriculum and offering special weekly programs World Wildlife Week, World Environment Week, Pasin Tumbuna Week and Creepy Critter Week.
Planned future developments in the Nature Park include a Reptile House, Bird of Paradise Precinct and new main picnic area. Whilst plans have been completed and are ready to staff, General Manager Michelle McGeorge noted that the Park was unable to start these projects as they were seeking sponsorship support before projects could commence.
She noted that the park was in discussions with a number of organisations so it was hoped that they would be successful in raising funds in the coming months so projects could commence.
For further information on Port Moresby Nature Park visit their Facebook page or contact 3260248 or reservations.pomnp@gmail.com.
The Park is open every day from 8am to 4:30pm.