By Wilson Thompson
THE Prime Minister and the government vision and targets are guide posts, but the biggest challenge in PNG is implementation and monitoring and evaluation by the public service.
The department and agency heads need to step back and become independent advisors and implementers instead of letting the minister do everything.
Evidence is clear where PM James Marape, Ministers and Governors, and MPs are posting events and activities where PR officers and media team and Department and Agency heads could promptly deliver weekly.
We often blame Treasury for warrants when we are praising Customs, IRC, and Finance for quarterly record-breaking revenue collections.
We must break records with the release of the warrants and the implementation of programs, projects, and activities.
A snapshot of 2024 Budget for AFF, Livestock and Tourism and Commerce and Industry and research for economies.
It shows an increase from 2023, and the figure is appropriated in 2024.
SMEC + 2m K15. 8
NISIT +5m K15. 8
ICDC +5m K12m
KIK +16m K 42.4 m
NCC – 0.3 K9. 4 m
NFA – 35m K15
FPDA +7m K21. 5
CIC +28m K56. 2 m
NFS +19m K67. 8
TPA +14m K35. 4 m
OPIC + 32 m K52 m
Trade – 19.5 m K10
NARI +5m is K14. 3
Cocoa +11m K42 m
LDC + 37 m K41. 6 m
DAL +67 m K131. 3 m incl.
Rubber Board K1. 2m nursery K3m
, factory K5m,
PACD K51. 6m,
MVF K18. 7m,
Spice K3m,
NADP K20
Freight K10m
Spice Board K1. 5 m
Cocoa Research Institute K5m
Coffee Research Institute K5 m
Agri State Equity K150m
DCI SME K200 m
DCI downstream K3m.
Highlands Agriculture College, K5 million
For research, funding of K8m to Research Technologies Council, K1 m to UNRE, UPNG, Unitech, and UOG for postgraduate student research geared at agriculture.
It shows an increase in each agency by over 30 percent in 2024.
The economic sector is supported by intervention in transport infrastructure such as Connect PNG, wharves, and airports.
There are primary industry functional grants to all provincial governments and economic components in the DSIP and PSIP.
What has been baffling the country in terms of economic and accounting analysis is the declining production from 2005 to 2020, where resource input increases, but there was no nominal and marginal and real growth..
From 2021 to 2023, there is a slight increase in the agricultural crops, and that is purely the private sector and farmers and growers response to price..
It is the sector hope that the PM and economic ministers should summon all the agency and department heads to provide statistics and report for 2023.
We must not hear if and buts and excuse in 2024.. Implementation has been weak or lacking on the policies and budgets and if we are ever to grow the economy to K200 billion, create 1 million jobs and 500 SME by 2030, it must start in January 2024.
