Bank of PNG, donors attend village banking graduation

“We don’t need handouts, but we badly need good roads to get our produce to the markets in town so that we generate money to care for our families”.
This was one of a number of appeals made to representatives of Bank of PNG and international donors who attended a combined village graduation in Madang recently. The villagers from north and south of Madang had completed a financial literacy training course that was facilitated by Bogia Cooperative Society (BCS) in Madang and funded under the PNG/ADB Microfinance pilot project.
Joe Hare, member of the Ving Community Development Centre along the north coast of Madang thanked Deputy Governor of Bank of PNG Loi Bakani, representatives of the Asian Development Bank, AusAID and Nationwide Microbank for their presence at Bunu village north of Madang. Madang Governor Sir Arnold Amet was unable to attend due to the budget sitting in Port Moresby.
He said they were grateful for the financial training they have received which has brought hope to the people living in the inland areas of the province who have no access to roads and other government infrastructures and services.
He said since 2006 Bogia Cooperative has established Community Development Centres (CDCs) in the disadvantage areas and introduced village banking services and training to help the people achieve some financial independence.
He said the cooperative’s efforts were recognized by the Asian Development Bank and Nationwide Micro Bank who have come in with resources to assist the project.
Mr Hare also asked ADB to continue to assist Bogia Cooperative to strengthen its institutional capacity so it can keep managing the CDCs that it has set up.
“The network has already been established between the donors, BCS and CDCs which is the way forward for rural development and poverty alleviation. Therefore we look forward to ADB’s next project to strengthen this network so we can trade our goods, save money, improve health and education for our children and the general wellbeing of our families and communities”.
Mr Hare also called on the Madang MPs to upgrade the feeder roads into the rural areas so people can take their cash crops to the markets. He also wanted the leaders to assist Bogia Cooperative with the necessary infrastructure so it can create export market links that would ensure maximum benefits go directly to the farmers.

Angry protesters halt PMIZ project

Angry protesters halt PMIZ project

Communities near the US$300 million (K990m) Pacific Marine Industrial Zone project in Madang, PNG, are determined to stop it from going ahead.
More than 500 angry protesters disrupted a project’s stakeholders meeting organized by the provincial government last month and forced the Minister for Commerce & Industry Gabriel Kapris and Madang Governor Sir Arnold Amet to meet them to accept a petition.
Work at project site has ceased as people await the government response to their petition.
The protesters of men, women and children mainly from the Bel language area surrounding Madang town and the project site are frustrated that the project is proceeding despite their opposition. Carrying banners and placards in English and Tok Pisin saying ‘No PMIZ’ and “We don’t want PMIZ to pollute our seas’, the protesters expressed their frustration demanding that the project be halted immediately.
The protesters said they wanted to show the government that there were many ordinary people, especially women, children and youths who opposed the project.
In their petition to Sir Arnold and Minister Kapris, the people said they had strong reservations about the proposed Pacific Marine Industrial Zone (PMIZ). They said while the government is pushing ahead, there are many legitimate concerns and questions about the project and its potential impact on the environment and communities that the government must address immediately.
They reminded the government that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007) provided that the free and informed consent of indigenous peoples shall be obtained “prior to the approval of any project affecting their lands or territories and other resources, particularly in connection with the development, utilization or exploitation of their mineral, water or other resources”.
They said they are offended and frustrated by the blatant disrespect displayed by both the provincial and national governments towards the people of Madang in bulldozing the establishment of the PMIZ.
“We are deeply disappointed with the lack of any meaningful awareness and consultation by the Government of PNG, with the people of Madang regarding the Pacific Marine Industrial Zone,” they said in their petition.
They said that they believe the activities of PMIZ would cause serious long term and possible irreversible damage to rich marine environment that is their customary fishing grounds. The well-documented environment and social problems caused by the operations of RD Tuna Cannery have also created a genuine fear within them that the problems will worsen with the establishment of PMIZ. The current issues with RD Tuna are environment pollution, Asians trading fish for sex, long hours work for low wages of K80 (US$26) per fortnight for women, and limited spin-offs for the local people.
They asked the government to ensure proper and meaningful awareness and consultation with all communities to be impacted by the activities of the PMIZ, and to seriously consider the findings of independent scientific research on the value of the coastal and marine environment of Madang.
They want the government to clarify customary rights over the sea, particularly the three nautical miles stated under the PNG law; clarify whether and how the government intends to accommodate four existing marine Wildlife Management Areas (WMA’s) and seven proposed areas under its PMIZ plan. They want the government to address the existing environment and social problems created by RD Tuna operations, and involve NGOs and civil society in any discussions on policies, laws and plans related to the PMIZ.
Governor Sir Arnold Amet while accepting the petition said that the stake-holders forum that he had organized was the right place where such issues should be raised. He invited all stakeholder leaders in government, communities and NGOs to attend the meeting to discuss the issue and to inform the people. However, the local people fear that the stakeholders’ forum is not representative of all the views and seems to be providing approval for the project to proceed.
Minister Kapris also warned people not to be misled by foreign NGOs whom the government is accusing of using the people to oppose the project. However, the people have brushed aside the government’s accusation. They said the majority of Bel people from the 8 major villages are opposed to the project because they believe it will affect them negatively. They perceive the project as only involving rich foreign companies, the Chinese, PNG politicians and few locals who have been bought off.
They also pointed out that the Bel people have a history of rebelling against authority, dating far back as the 1904 rebellion against the German colonialists over land in Madang. In the rebellion, the forefathers of the present protesters secretly armed themselves and descended upon the Germans in Madang town with the intention to kill them all. The planned attack failed only because one of the local people had informed the Germans in time and police managed to ward off the attackers. The German retaliation was harsh. Six local leaders were executed by firing squad and the local population was exiled from the area. Today a deep resentment still remains over land issues especially involving foreigners.
The lack of adequate consultation and knowledge about the PMIZ project is a major factor in fueling opposition to the project. PMIZ is turning out to be another major Chinese funded project being pushed by PNG government ministers and their Chinese partners. The project was hatched in Port Moresby and neither the Madang provincial government nor the people were involved until the planned groundbreaking ceremony early this year. The locals were only consulted when the national government realized there would be opposition from the people. The project is to harvest the rich tuna resources in the Western Pacific which will be dumped at Vidar in Madang. Up to 10 tuna factories will be established on a 216 hectare special economic zone that is promising up to 30, 000 jobs. Thousands of Asians are also expected to be employed at the site. Offshore finance of K810m is being obtained from China’s Exim Bank on the condition that no non Chinese companies are to bid for the main contract. The government has yet to reveal who the main Chinese contractor is or any of the other partners involved in the project.
The local people have vowed to peacefully oppose and legally challenged the project.

PMIZ is another major Chinese project

The controversial Pacific Marine Industrial Zone project being developed at Vidar in Madang will be funded and developed by a Chinese company.
Major funding for the project will come from a concessional loan from ExIm Bank in China. Main condition for the loan is that 70% of the project must go exclusively to a Chinese company using Chinese technology, labor and equipment.
The name of the company has not been revealed but it is believed that the project will go to a major Chinese company already operating in PNG. Other companies including local PNG firms can only bid for the remaining 30% of the contract that is if it becomes available. Another condition tied to the loan is that the main contractor’s profit margin will be 20% of the contract value.
Two other Chinese companies have also been named inline with the PMIZ project although very little is known about both organizations. The first one is Shandong Fisheries Management Bureau (Shandong Haiyang Yuye Guanli Ju), and the Binhai City Xingfa Fisheries Group (Shandong Sheng Binhai Shi Xingfa Yuye Jituan).
Both companies have neither national nor international experience with Shandong being a provincial government level agency and Binhai City Zingfa Fisheries Group is a city or prefecture level company.
While the national government ministers have been promising spin-off businesses and contracts to local and landowner companies, the reality is that Papua New Guinean companies are likely to get very little. Contracts for ground clearing and fencing have been awarded to companies whose background has not been disclosed, beyond the fact that they are PNG owned. No information has been given as to who the ultimate owners are.
This is one of the main issues that are fueling opposition to the project. Locals who oppose the project believe that PNG government leaders behind the project are either completely ignorant about the arrangement or are benefiting from it.

Riwo village battles effects of climate change

Until last year, rising sea level at Riwo village in Madang had threatened to wash away a significant part of the village. Directly in the path of the increasing water level was the Catholic Immaculate Conception Church which would have been damaged. However, the villagers, with the help of RD Tuna Cannery who supplied more than 200 empty 44 gallon drums, have erected a 100-meter sea wall reclaiming more than 20 meters of area that was under water. Work is still continuing to extend the sea wall along the waterfront to protect the rest of the village. Chairman of the Church Council Michael Kalal said the villagers are still seeking assistance to complete the sea wall project. Picture: Riwo Catholic Church chairman Michael Kalal explaining plans to develop the sea wall project.