Indian Business Delegation in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has greeted a business delegation from the Confederation of Indian Investment (CII) that was undertaking its first ever exploratory visit for enriched bilateral ties with Papua New Guinea.

As India’s foremost business organization, the CII has around 8,000 members from the private and public sectors, including SMEs and multi-national corporations. At the invitation of PM O’Neill, the group is digging business opportunities in the areas of healthcare, tourism, petroleum and natural gas, handicrafts, textiles, agriculture, education, infrastructure, mining and mineral resources.

“Now is the time to invest in Papua New Guinea,” the Prime Minister said.

“With global pressures facing commodity exporters around the world, Papua New Guinea’s economic fundamentals are strong.

“This visit by the Confederation of Indian Investments demonstrates the confidence the international business community has in our country.

“We welcome business and investment from India and the impact this will have on employment and development.

“The visit is also important as we prepare for the anticipated visit to Papua New Guinea by the President of India, His Excellency Pranab Mukherjee that is proposed to take place in 2016.

The Prime Minister said the trade flow between the two countries is not large at the moment but has been increasing steadily with the potential for further growth.

“Our two countries can capitalize on existing synergies to enhance trade and investment relations between them.

“Papua New Guinea can do business with India as we have the resources and India has the market which can be tapped into readily.

“Papua New Guinea’s engagement with India in trade and investment has progressively increased since the opening of our High Commission in India in 2006’’, the Prime Minister said.

India and Papua New Guinea continue to relish close and friendly relations since establishing formal diplomatic ties in 1976. The two countries also collaborate in other international forums including the summit of the Forum for India Pacific Islands Co-operation (FIPIC), where India is looking for to forge trade and economic relations with the Pacific.

Prime Minister Peter O’Neill attended the meeting of the India Pacific Islands Co-operation Forum in India last year. The CII delegation and was led by the entity’s Head, Pacific International Cooperation desk, Ms Suhba Ranjab, and met with Prime Minister O’Neill on 15 February 2016.

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PGA Tour heads to PNG for the first time

The PGA Tour of Australasia will discover new territories in 2016 as it heads up to Papua New Guinea for the first time. The South Pacific Export Radler PNG Open will become a fully-fledged PGA Tour of Australasia tournament after many years of being an effective pro-am event.

To be played at the Royal Port Moresby Golf Club, which efficaciously hosted the Pacific Games last year.

To be played at the Royal Port Moresby Golf Club, which fruitfully hosted the Pacific Games in 2015, Tour Professionals will be competing for a minimum of AU$140,000 and Official World Golf Ranking Points when they tee off from 21-24 April, 2016.

"The PGA Tour of Australasia continues to grow and offer Tour Professionals opportunities to compete in quality tournaments," said Brian Thorburn, CEO of the PGA of Australia which oversees the Tour.

"We are delighted to have the South Pacific Export Radler PNG Open join the schedule, expanding the Tour's presence across Australasia."

"The PNG Open has for many years been run successfully as a pro-am on the Choice Hotels PGA Pro-Am Series but its elevation to the Tour sees the prize money become official on the PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit, the application of Official World Ranking Points and as such it is expected the tournament will receive a boost in the strength of field competing for the title."

Papua New Guinea will be one of five countries the PGA Tour of Australasia visits in 2016 with events on the schedule being played across Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and New Caledonia.

The South Pacific Export Radler PNG Open also becomes the third National Open on the PGA Tour of Australasia's schedule with the BMW ISPS HANDA New Zealand Open and Emirates Australian Open to also be contested in 2016.

From Papua New Guinea the PGA Tour of Australasia will travel to Western Australia for the Nexus Risk Group TSA WA Open to be played from 28 April – 1 May with the TX Civil and Logistics WA PGA Championship being played in Kalgoorlie from 12-15 May.

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Redirecting Investment Focus in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea’s current bank legislation can be altered to safeguard that banks redirect their investment focus towards Papua New Guinea’s renewable sectors, according to Trade Minister, Richard Maru. Minister Maru says this would require banks in PNG to capitalize a certain percentage of their revenue, into agriculture, fisheries, Small to Medium Enterprises, SMEs, and tourism.

“In countries such as Sri Lanka, their government imposes a license where the banks lend their planning funds to sectors the government needs them to lend to, such as agriculture and SMEs.”

“So in the PNG context, if banks want a license to operate in Papua New Guinea, they must lend a certain percentage of their loan funds to these sectors and that must be imposed by law,” said Minister Maru.

Currently, 70% of the country’s revenue is derived from corporate taxes and cash flows from the extractive industry trading against commodity prices, which depict a constant downward trend at present and have been for several months. The same message was conveyed to the nation through Treasury Secretary, Dairi Vele during the 2016 Leaders’ Summit, hosted by Prime Minister, Peter O’Neill.

Though there was no confirmation from PM O’Neill and the government if the country was experiencing cash shortages, there were thoughtful presentations from various speakers of the Summit that pointed the renewable sector as PNG ‘saving grace.’

Minister Maru, says the country’s economy, through a government-bank synergy can be the solution in reviving PNG’s renewable sector, which includes 6.1 million people directly or indirectly involved in agriculture.

“Banks in Papua New Guinea are investing more into low-risk business ventures and not prioritizing agri-businesses and SMEs, which are perceived to be high-risk.”

“The sectors that need to be grown are the sustainable such as, agriculture, SMEs, fisheries and tourism and these sustainable sectors will never grow without significant investment and technology."

“One the biggest problem in PNG is investment fund not reaching these sectors, despite millions and billions that are going to the banks,” said Minister Maru.

The country’s most extensive bank with the largest customer base, Bank South Pacific replied to Minister Maru’s recommendations. BSP Group CEO, Robyn Flemming said BSP invests about K100 million to the SME sector while K300 million is introduced into commercial agriculture.

“We agree that investment in SMEs and agriculture is part of nation-building and within BSP, we like to think that we are part of that nation-building. We’ve got the best part between K80 million and K100 million in loans to various SME sectors. In agriculture, it’s predominantly with secondary support of the oil palm sector and we pumping in, for the best part of around K300 million.”

 “SME is somewhat more viable then agriculture – agriculture is not high-risk but it’s certainly one that requires a lot of direct support from a training perspective, perhaps some form of support to be able to have the equivalent of a stabilization component so that when commodity prices are down, people still have some capacity to be able to reimburse loan repayments and banks can be innovative, in terms of the repayment structure,” Flemming said.

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Social Media can make this possible

For businesses in any industry, the key to victory is knowing and understanding your audience. Social media makes this conceivable, and easier to achieve than ever. With tools like Facebook and LinkedIn, you can study the dominant languages spoken among your social media audience, as well as their age and gender.

Hosted by the Pacific Business Trust and presented by business expert and author Matt Jull, CEO of My Business People,  the Social Media workshop demonstrated to more than 50 participants how Social Media can assist them not only as a professional, but market your business to other businesses and consumers.

The hands-on and very interactive workshop exposed the most significant facets of Social Media Marketing as one of the most competent ways to market and grow a business. Participants were treated to tips on how to use Social Media to find new customers and develop your audience, insight to improve market intelligence and get ahead of your competitor with Social Media and the opportunity for business owners or ambitious entrepreneur to not only build their online presence, but to also target audiences effectively.

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A Young Female Entrepreneur of PNG

Encouraging PNG Business is significant in getting the people more involved in business activities that can assist nurture the country’s economy.

‘Mami Chakara’ a 100% PNG owned Hair & Beauty Company, retained by an imminent young female entrepreneur Ms Watna Mori, was launched recently in Port Moresby at level 2 ANG Haus. Watna, who is the Managing Director for Mami Chakara got her business name from Africa, which means ‘wild girl’ in the local African Pidgin slang.
She said all their hair care products are made with PNG ingredients and its 100% suitable for natural PNG hair.

Watna is also inspiring young women out there who want to venture into business to work hard and be strong-minded by their dreams and goals and to apply their expertise and knowledge to their best abilities that will benefit themselves and their family and also the country as a whole.

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Malaysia Appreciates Growth in Trade with Papua New Guinea

According to High Commissioner to Papua New Guinea Jilid Kuminding, Malaysia is pleased with the growth of trade with PNG.

He said that, Malaysia’s total trade with PNG during the period January to November escalated by 15.6 percent scrutinize to previous year. It was worth RM1.74 billion (K1.16 billion) – an increase of RM835.79 million (K557.8million).

He also said that, from 2010 to 2014, Malaysia’s total trade with PNG immovably increased from RM1.12 billion (K0.74billion) to RM1.7 billion (K1.13billion) – recounting an overall appreciation of 51 per cent in those five years.

Kuminding said PNG was Malaysia’s third largest trading partner in Oceania. Globally, PNG is Malaysia’s 51st largest trading partners over the same period. Malaysia’s exports to PNG were valued at RM1.29 billion (K0.86billion), increasing by 3.7 per cent (RM45.38 million) (K30.3million) from the corresponding period in 2014. 

He added the preeminent reason for export growth during that period was machinery, appliances and parts, beverages and tobacco, and petroleum products.

 “The overall relation is very good,” Kuminding said. “PNG is one of the most important destinations for export in terms of investment in the Pacific. I’m very happy that the growth of our trade, be it our export to PNG as well as Papua New Guinea’s export to Malaysia was very, very positive, especially last year.” He also added.

“Unbelievable. And I’m very happy. Trade must be equal partnership. We want to import more from you. We want to buy more from Papua New Guinea because still, it’s not a balance trade. It’s in our favor but we would like to very much have more from PNG. Now it is on the increase and I think that is a very good indicator,” he said.

Kuminding said it was important the trade must continue to grow. 

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Mining Prospects in Papua New Guinea

After a decade of increasing mineral reconnaissance activity, PNG mineral sector appears to have leaked in 2012.

In contrast to the period antecedent to the recent decade has been braced. PNG resource sector has divulged remarkable resilience. In 2002, there was a widespread expectation that much of PNG’s resource sector.

Legislative changes in 2003 that made the mineral sector more tantalizing to investors. First for PNG export of nickel and cobalt commenced in March, 2012 with lateritic nickel venture expected to ramp up to full design capacity of 31,150 tons of contained nickel and 3,300 tons of cobalt in 2016.

PNG has been successful in tantalizing a broad cross section of mineral companies arbitrating a large number of junior companies as well as a group of larger international companies, inclusive of world leaders. This is a healthy situation for the industry as the juniors are often the most bellicose explorers, but it is the larger players that underwrite the joint ventures that provide exploration funds and hereafter a great balance sheet for any possible developments. 

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