Papua New Guinea needs to invest in sustainable industries such as tourism, agriculture and fisheries.
Tourism Minister Tobias Kulang said that in the last 40 years, PNG has been depending too much on mineral resources and hydro carbon proceeds that we don’t pay attention to sustainable industries.
Kulang said we need to invest in sustainable industries so that when the minerals become exhausted, we can depend on sustainable resources to contribute immensely to the country’s economy.
“Tourism is a very serious industry where in other countries and contributes immensely to their economic growth.
“We need to start dealing with tourism in a serious manner because when resources like oil, gas, gold and copper are depleted, we can fall back on tourism,” Kulang said.
He added that we need to preserve our tourism destinations and sites like the Kokoda Track, not only because of this historical significance but also the tourism value.
He challenged the Government to also increase funding for tourism promotion.
Picture: Walindi Reef Resort in West New Britain, courtesy of Bluewater Dive Travel