PNG’s economic performance in 2021 was similar to that of 2020 as Covid-19 containment measures remains a major constraint to global and local economic activity.
The economy is dominated by the resources, agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors.
While most of PNG’s labour force is employed in the agricultural sector (largely informally), the vast majority of its export earnings are through the resources sector.
PNG’s economy is driven largely by the resource sector with the major export commodities being gold and LNG, together comprising over 80% of total oil and gas and mineral export value (70% of total export value including non-mineral).
The dominance of the extractive industries in PNG’s exports, together with the limited range of commodities being exported, leaves the economy vulnerable to the cyclical nature of commodity markets (PNGEITI, 2019).