Comments

Carmen, your story is worth reading.

Dennis, As part of my final year thesis for my My Major Research Paper, I'm interested in writing about the need for a more viable and proactive National policy approach on the subject on Municipal solid waste management, given that NCD is the first to pioneer with its waste management policy. Would really appreciate your input on the viability on other alternative waste management practices that is cost-effective in the long run as well as environmentally friendly, such as the project that you are initiating. i can be reached on my email nebanisam@gmail.com kind regards Ben

Carmen, thanks for your lovely insights. I agree that PNG gets a very bad wrap because of POM and parts of the Highlands where tribalism is rampant. One forward looking leader is Hon. Anderson Agiru from Southern Highlands. His message is consistent, plain and bold. "You keep fighting tribal wars, then don't come and ask me for compensation." I grew up in POM (my Mother tongue is Motu). I've been in a lot of places in PNG. Even remote villages in Goroka, and the Gulf and tiny Islands like Malie in New Ireland Province. Life goes on. People in 'rural' places have products to sell, fish and game to catch and children to feed. What happens in Port Moresby, or other parts of the country, in a 24 hr cycle, is of no direct significance to them.They look after their land. I'm not bragging, but I had seen most of the world by the time I was 23. I have lived, travelled and worked in a lot of places! Once, in Sardinia, my taxi driver told me that his island was not Lebanon or Damascus! Go figure. Yes, I've walked Kokoda, Berlin, Buenos Aires, Amman, Harlem, Cairo, Sofia, and Aiwo in Nauru too. They had their risks. I caught the same bus as Kofi Annan to the UN most mornings from Roosevelt Island,NYC without private security. Thank God, nothing happened. I have used common sense. Well, well, my house got burgled in Suva, but all they got was my Cuban and Pacific CDs and my leather jacket! I lived in "Domain" on Ratu Sukuna Rd, two minutes walk from town. I moved from Fiji to Cairns, Australia. After 5 years, my two cars got stolen outside my yard in the City! Damn, I thought I was in a civilized world. Crime happens everywhere. In Cairns, a guy just dissolved his partner in acid thinking he could get away with intentional murder. Is Cairns still safe and touristic? Yes, yes, Yes. I look outside my house in POM in the morning, and see mums and dads taking their children to school, hoping that they get a good education and succeed in life. I wish things could be less expensive and tougher in this city. I now work in PNG (with Carmen), and the one big contrast with PNG and other developing and developed countries is that elsewhere I have lived, 'you do the crime, you do the time.' Sadly, in PNG, this is still not evidently so, and the Good Samaritans, that Melanesians are known for, seem too afraid to help others in trouble, because of the psyche they grow up with in this city, and come to accept that it's the norm, so as to survive another day. But they are there, plentiful, the PNGean that is a proud landowner, hard-working, happy, peaceful and kind. They need to turn the tide, so that the fences and Walls, like the Australian fortress at Konedobu, (Ozcatraz), near to where I grew up with my aunt, with a small wire fence, expat neighbours, a mango tree, a cricket ball, and no crime - can eventually come down. Sadly, I doubt this will happen very soon. Perhaps. Adam

It's always good to be aware of movements in various trade metrics as they provide an indication of underlying changes in the economy relative to other countries or the region. However, in my view they are not an end in themselves and need to be accompanied with an explanation of what is happening within the domestic economy (relative to other economies). Furthermore, I'm hesitant to describe these trade metrics as a measure of "performance" because when presented in isolation it is hard ascertain how they relate to the underlying performance of the economy. Here are a few explanations for each of your 4 findings: (1) Export volumes have not increased in recent years due to production problems at Ok Tedi (both in terms of falling grade and throughput), the devastation to the cocoa industry from the cocoa pod borer, the impact of dutch disease (currency appreciation, property boom in POM, and skill shortages) on the domestic economy resulting from the investment phase of the PNG LNG project, and the focus of the PNG national government on facilitating the PNG LNG project, potentially at the expense of other green-field investments. All of these issues, apart from Ok Tedi, are likely to be resolved soon, and of course the impact of LNG shipments on exports will be huge. (2) PNG's falling share of world exports doesn't mean much since growth in world trade in large part reflects trade in intermediate goods (and so is a poor measure of the change in income/value added) but PNG's exports are almost pure value added. Apples are being compared with oranges here at least in terms of any inference on performance. (3) The trade to GDP ratio may fall due to an increase in the size of the domestic economy and so is not necessarily a bad thing - eg. the US has a much smaller trade to GDP ratio simply because its domestic economy is so strong. Whether this explanation applies to PNG or instead reflects export problems mentioned above or increased barriers to imports needs further investigation. (4) It would be good to complement this point with say simulations of different commodity prices (reflecting historical variation) on GDP to see how much impact a high level of concentration might have on the economy. I’m sure there are other factors I haven’t mentioned here which would complement this piece.

Here here Diane! And thank you Carmen for your fair account. As a PNG ples mangi who's lived in New Zealand and now Australia, I miss home and given the chance would return in a heartbeat. I look forward to reading about the outcomes of your work there. All the best, laikim.

If cheaper fights were offered from Australia then Timor Leste might see more tourists.

I loved my time in Papua New Guinea. I went prawn trawling on my friends trawler for 11 days in Gulf Of Papua off Kerema. I visited Bougainville in 1980 and helped with a Pidgin Radio broadcast on Radio Kalang. I visited many wonderful places from Vanimo to Rabaul, Mendi, Lae, Mt Hagen and along the Papuan coast. The place was truly uplifting for the warmth of the people once you were trusted by Papua New Guineans as a person there to help and not just chase the dollar. I was married while I was there and 3 of my kids were born at POMGH Maternity ward. I am still in touch with a number of my friends there after not being in PNG for 24 years. It really is an amazing place and yes I have seen the worst of it but still hold my time there dearly.

Carmen, Thank you for writing this positive article about PNG. PNG does suffer from too much negative coverage and those of us who have come to love the country and its people share your enthusiasm and vision for its future. While I acknowledge the many challenges PNG faces, I have no doubt that the resourcefulness of its diverse and resilient population will find culturally appropriate solutions to develop a fair and equitable society.

I am sorry to hear of your experience Jim - that must have been shocking. However I was not saying at all that every negative story on POM incenses me. But tragic and shocking crimes also happen here in Australia and women and men die here as a result - every day. What incenses me is the single image of PNG and Port Morseby which is perpetuated by a heavily vested interest, security industry, and the media. POM has its dangers and it would be naive to ignore them. What Carmen has done is present an alternative story of the vibrant and beautiful country which is PNG and a balanced account of living in Port Moresby in a way which respects the people whose country it is. It is still true that few expats have the sort of traumatic experience you had. The data does not lie.

Thank you , Carmen for writing this,. As a local born , bred and educated in this beautiful country that I call home,. it pains me when working , for an International Company,. my expat colleagues utter negative words about the country and its people,. it often hurts and I wonder if their homes are truly better than ours,. Or if they look beyond and see the beauty,. Thank you so much for your honesty and what you have written, it is uplifting to know that no everyone views the country with such narrow eyes,. I wish you Gods blessings as you stay in my home and if we ever do cross,. I would very much like to give a hug and take you home to meet my extended family and the beauty of the Land of the Bird of Paradise- PNG , especially the Papuan Coast,. where I am from

Carmen great article, I would also like to add it is not within the best interests of any of the "Security Agencies" to paint PNG and or Port Moresby as a safe and comfortable location to reside, first of all they would all be out of business if they did, so in effect the worse it appears from the outside the more money they make, why the PNG Govt continues to blame the "Foreign Media" for this is anyone's guess as from my perspective a person who was born and remains a resident of Port Moresby for the past 52 years the biggest culprit for PNG's or Port Moresby's bad name is the resident Security companies as they are the ones who work in tandem with "The foreign risk management" agencies to write up most of this negative rubbish. It is a huge multinational business with many shareholders in the UK, US and of course Australia who receive huge dividends based on PNG's bad international reputation....I accept Port Moresby has its crime issues not unlike many cities where people are hungry and have little hope, however I have traveled extensively and note there are many places in the US I would not walk after dark nor drive for that matter, so it is in fact all relative.

Hi Kate, I'll offer some thoughts below re Timor Leste's economy, though better informed people than me have probably already discussed these ideas and many others. One thought re Timor Leste's economy is that it's right next door to some pretty tough competition. Indonesia can produce almost anything more cheaply than Timor Leste and with a more pliant, better skilled workforce. Timor Leste may have to content itself with niche markets, where its competitive advantage is not regarding price but regarding its uniqueness. The obvious example is Timor Leste coffee, which can compete against Indonesian coffee because of its established reputation from Portuguese times, its use of overwhelmingly organic farming methods, certain countries' sympathies with Timor Leste, etc. Perhaps other Timor Leste agricultural products could exploit similar themes to be marketed overseas. If Timor Leste's sandalwood or teak industry ever recover, its reputation with these industries may help with marketing. If it can produce these while complying with international conservation standards, that'll probably also give it a marketing edge over Indonesian wood. Tourism needs to emphasise the things that Indonesia hasn't got: the Portuguese architectural and cultural heritage, various sites connected with the history of resistance to Indonesian rule, and (up until recently) less traffic. I'm sure there are other niche markets. Fishing has potential but policing Timorese waters could be expensive. In addition to Timorese fishing fleets, maybe Timor Leste could sell fishing rights to some larger companies from just one or two countries. The companies or even their governments could then assist with policing. Then there are dodgier schemes like a tax haven or money laundering facilities. Maybe that's the only way the Oi Cussi special economic zone will ever be profitable. A final thought is that more of Timor Leste's money needs to be spent domestically. Currently, middle class Timorese do their shopping sprees overseas and international advisers send large amounts to overseas bank accounts. It's not inconceivable that a 'playground for the rich' could be set up on Atauro Island or the lake at Maubara. It might become a centre of vice but at least it would keep more money in-country.