By CLIFFORD FAIPARIK
FOREST Industry is driving Marape-Rosso Government’s ambitious Connect PNG Program to build roads in the missing link areas to serve people in remote areas throughout the country.
These new roads will unlock remote areas and open huge potential agriculture areas to grow the country’s economy.
And one of the missing link areas is between the provinces of Central and Milne Bay where there are no roads. And so, the people in the Abau district in Central province and Alotau district in Milne Bay province are cut off from receiving services in Port Moresby and Alotau Town.
But the suffering of being isolated and feeling of being left out will soon be a thing of the past as forestry is contributing to the Connect PNG Program to connect Milne Bay and Central through loggings projects in Cloudy Bay and Amazon Bay areas. These areas are in the Abau district sharing the border with Alotau district.
Currently the Active Forest Limited (AFL) logging company is now building roads in this area while harvesting logs. These roads are built to harvest logs. Later these roads will be realigned under the connect PNG program’s roadmap will be further upgraded to an all-weather road required under the standards of Department of Works and Highways.
Last week a joint Government team from the Department of Prime Minister and National Forest Authority inspected the progress of a road construction that will link Central and Milne Bay provinces under the Connect PNG Program.
The inspection came about after Abau MP Sir Puka Temu raised concern in the recent parliament sitting on the road construction if the construction company is working in partnership with the Logging company to construct the road.
In response, the team led by Forest Minister Salio Waipo and NFA Managing Director John Mossoro went to Lipa River in Abau district on Tuesday where the Magi Highway ends – about 300kms from Port Moresby. Abau MP Sir Puka Temu also accompanied them and discovered that another 70kms was extended to Babugina village to Lipa River.
Babugina village is in the Cloudy Bay Local Level Government where the original Magi Highway ends. And another 70 kms was constructed from Babugina village to Lipa River. The extra 70kms was jointly built by AFL logging company and a construction company engaged by the Department of Works and Highways.
During the inspection, Abau MP Sir Puka Temu then reminded the logging company and construction company to work together. Sir Puka also urged both companies to working together with the landowners.
“We are here to make sure that all parties participate in trying to map this Connect PNG Program between Abau district of Central province to Milne Bay province. And what we are saying is there are timber projects that are operating in this area. So, our job is to work on one plan only. Like in virgin forest we want the value of the trees too, so the company has to go first to check the value so it will be part of the royalties paid, rather than you go in to cut trees at will, spoil the trees and there is no value for it. Those are the issues the land owners want to address so we want to work together. And on the ground in here, I got my ward MPs here.
For me I want an approved route for the connect PNG direction in this difficult area where rivers are going to come because water ways are well spread and engineering is very difficult. We have learnt many lessons and so we can do a good job in this part of PNG for connect PNG. So, talk with the land owners to identify special areas like graves, and others,” Sir Puka said.
Forest Minister Salio Waipo was happy for AFL to construct this road under the National Government Connect PNG program.
Mr Waipo said “we have the connect PNG program and we will work closely with the Department of Works and Highways. I want to thank AFL General Manager David Ling and his team for their massive effort”.
“This is what the government wants to connect PNG by working with all our partners through private sector and public partnership so that we can achieve whatever goals that our government has for our people. Basically, it’s for our people. Whatever we do must be for our people. Besides, we as the Minister and MP, we represent our people. So whatever decision that we do must reflect and benefit our people. This is a way forward to work with all our investors in the country in all sectors like agriculture, forestry and other sectors so we can all hold hands together with our government to achieve the best for our people.”
Also, NFA Managing Director John Mossoro said “we will see how best to help the companies to connect PNG. If they want to bring in material to construct the bridges, we will see how we can help them. We will look at some sort of incentives to assist the two companies like if they want to use steels to build bridges, we can liaison with customs to exempt them tax, so this sort of arrangement we can do. We can do such permanent arrangement with logging companies to build schools and health centers”.
“And I want to thank the company to work on the road. Before it was in bad state but now, it is in good state. Also, for providing services to the people at their own cost and that’s what one thing that we must appreciate. The Government is there, and under the Connect PNG we must consider such companies as service providers. Not only in cloudy Bay but around the country. This company has good track records in their other logging operations also in West Sepik. We must support these types of companies.”
