James Marape

Prime Minister James Marape announced that the government will be supporting the team with K8.5 million to send the team to the Solomon Islands this month. Marape made the announcement during Team PNG’s farewell event at the Sir John Guise Indoor Complex on Friday 10^th November.

When this support comes through, it will see a full team of 514 athletes and officials line up against the rest of the Pacific in 20 of the 24 sports that are on offer.

Speaking at the opening ceremony on Tuesday evening, Prime Minister Marape offered to all delegates of the forum, both international and Papua New Guinean, the links established and fostered by the government to international markets.

Prime Minister Marape told delegates of the WIBF of the potential of PNG’s natural resources. He says the national government gives its support to all and hopes that by the end of the forum, indigenous businesses in attendance are better connected and linked to their respective peers in business, not just in PNG but abroad.

“We have invested more in the Public Investment Programme (PIP) than any other government to date. Allocating 40 per cent of the National Budget to PIP surpasses the efforts of our predecessors,” stated PM Marape.

The Prime Minister highlighted the transformation of the Highlands Highway as a prime example of their comprehensive approach to development, contrasting it with the "cut and paste" methods of the previous administration.

“The Highlands Highway, spanning from Kagamuga Airport to Nadzab Airport, has undergone a world-class rehabilitation," he emphasised.

These two bridges were the 84-metre Toto Bridge and Unung Bridge, which is about 100 metres in length. Both bridges are located within the West Pomio LLG and are about 8 kilometres apart, with Unung furthest to the border of the two LLGs of West and Central Pomio.

The PM was accompanied by National Ministers Renbo Paita, Solan Mirisim and Joe Sungi to the district headquarters to launch the bridges and the ENB Provincial Strategic Development Plan (SDP) 2023-2033.

He made this statement after he and Prime Minister James Marape met with US President, Joe Biden today at the White House in Washington, DC.

“The United States economy is the largest in the world, valued at $US26,854 billion (K97,650bn) in 2023, according to the latest IMF figures.

“This is still nearly 40 percent larger than the second largest economy of China, of $ US19,373 billion (K70, 447bn).

The Government is fully committed to assembling a determined and formidable team of athletes.

Prime Minister James Marape, an advocate for the unifying power of sports, emphasized the remarkable ability of sports to unite nations, forge friendships among youth and athletes, and promote healthy lifestyles.

He said the Government wholeheartedly endorsed the PNG team and called upon the athletes, Team PNG management, and the PNG Olympic Committee to prepare diligently, upholding the nation's honour.

He said the reason being the government has yet to mitigate the nation's youth bulge pandemic, create safe communities, leverage its geopolitical strength to rapidly create mass employment through foreign direct investment, and promote sustainable resource management that benefits landowners.

The meeting was also attended by the Senior Vice President of Digicel PNG Limited, Lorna McPherson.

During the meeting, Ms. Brady expressed her satisfaction with the current Telstra services in Papua New Guinea, highlighting the successful integration of Digicel PNG Limited into the Telstra Agreement. She proudly shared that Telstra committed to deliver 115 towers nationwide and is on track to provide improved services to rural areas by March 2024.

He also praised the Government for hosting the inaugural PNG-Asia Investment forum in Hong Kong and opening of a trade mission in Shenzhen, in the Republic of China.

A team will visit Shenzhen in the coming weeks to finalize  negotiations on the office space for the trade mission and to cost out the whole setup and operation.

The position of the trade commissioner will be advertised  as soon as possible.

The visit marks a significant milestone as it will be the first time a French president has visited an independent country in the Pacific.

PM Marape views President Macron's visit as a testament to Papua New Guinea's growing global connectivity and prominence on the international stage.

He expressed enthusiasm for the opportunities the visit will bring to strengthen ties between the two nations and promote bilateral cooperation.