A five-member legislative team from the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) is in New Ireland on a week-long fact finding mission to study the province’s parliamentary and administrative systems.
Led by Deputy Clerk of the Bougainville Parliament Donald Misang, the delegation arrived in New Ireland on Sunday and is visiting key government institutions to gather ideas that could help shape Bougainville’s developing legislative structures.
The team visited the New Ireland Provincial Assembly in Kavieng on Monday, where members toured the province’s K12 million state of the art assembly complex.
New Ireland Deputy Governor Clifford Kolivos said the assembly building was developed from the vision of the late former New Ireland Governor and former Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan and was funded through the provincial government’s internal revenue.
Kolivos said the complex had become an important landmark in New Ireland and the wider New Guinea Islands region, with its design and development now attracting interest from Bougainville.
“The New Ireland Provincial Assembly building is an iconic structure in the New Guinea Islands region, and we are pleased to share our experience with our brothers and sisters from Bougainville,” Kolivos said.
The ABG delegation is particularly interested in architectural and administrative concepts as Bougainville considers plans to establish three separate Parliament houses in North, Central and South Bougainville.
Misang said the proposed arrangement would allow parliamentary sittings to rotate between the three regions, bringing the legislative process closer to communities across Bougainville.
During its week long visit, the delegation will also study the operations of the New Ireland Provincial Administration and gather information on administrative systems and other areas relevant to Bougainville’s governance arrangements.
New Ireland Provincial Government Media and Protocol Officer Cynthia Passinghan said the visit provided an opportunity for New Ireland and Bougainville to exchange experiences and learn from each other.
The visit is also expected to strengthen institutional and people to people relations between the two regions as they continue developing governance systems responsive to the needs of their people.
The New Ireland Provincial Government has welcomed the delegation and expressed its willingness to share its experience and knowledge with the Bougainville legislative team during its stay in Kavieng.
I tightened the opening, removed repetition and kept the key K12 million assembly complex and Bougainville’s proposed three-Parliament model prominent.