Prime Minister James Marape in his opening address at the Annual Papua New Guinea – Australia Business Forum congratulated Australia’s newly elected Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
“I want to congratulate the Honorable Anthony Albanese, the Prime Minister of Australia and his Labor Party for their election win declared last Saturday evening. I look forward to an early opportunity to meet and have conversation on the most-important bilateral relationship in the region: our Papua New Guinea-Australia relationship.”
Prime Minister Marape continued, “I want to also thank the Member for Cook, the Right Honorable Scott Morrison, for his time as Prime Minister in the last three and half years. Under his leadership, PNG and Australia relations have reached greater heights as trusted friends and a strategic economic partner nation instead of the traditional aid or donor and recipient relationships.”
PM Marape said Australia, being the closest nation to PNG and where PNG is home to more Australian business than anyway else in the world, the conversations on economic relationship is both contemporary and futuristic.
“Hence, I look forward to do more work with the new Labor Government on the economic aspect of our national relationships.”