BANK South Pacific Financial Group Limited has presented a cheque of K200,000 to the National Trade Office to support the 2025 Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Summit as a Gold Sponsor.
The Ministry of International Trade and Investment will host the summit from 31 August to 3 September in the lead-up to PNG’s 50th Independence Anniversary.
The summit will provide a platform for government, industry, international experts, and development partners to reflect on the country’s economic progress and set a strategic direction for the next 50 years.
International Trade and Investment Minister Richard Maru, thanked BSP for its contribution and support, and emphasised the critical role of public-private partnerships in achieving economic independence.
“We appreciate BSP’s commitment as Gold Sponsor. This summit is about more than SEZ, it’s about resetting our course and ensuring that in the next 50 years, PNG achieves true economic independence.
“It’s very important that PNG needs to understand these facts, the size of our economy is only USD31 billion. All our land, forest and marine lives, we have failed to build an economy which is big enough to sustain the current population.
“This Summit is very important for the country, we are going to look at our past strategy where we fail and how we can double and triple our size of economy in the next 10 years. The Marape Government is very keen on that to grow the economy,” Mr Maru added.
He added that it would cost K3 million to host the summit and the Government was keen to partner local and international banking institutions.
“Among those coming will be potential investors in large scale agriculture project, hydro projects and government is now focusing on downstream processing of all our raw materials, not only in agriculture, fisheries and forestry but we also looking dietary processing in the mining and petroleum sector, we are looking at the new refinery so they’ll be a lot of investment opportunity marketed during the Summit also they’ll be a lot of potential customers,” Mr Maru said.
BSP Group CEO Mark Robinson said the bank was pleaded to be involved in nation building and going beyond traditional financial services
“As the leading financial institution in PNG and across the South Pacific, we are very proud to go beyond banking – supporting platform like this that drive strategic dialogue, bold reform, and visionary economic planning.
“Our contribution for this Summit is not just an investment in an event – it is an investment in a national conversation.
“Let me reaffirm BSP’s ongoing support, we are ready to partner with the government, business and communities to turn potential into prosperity,” Mr. Robinson said.
The summit will spotlight updates on seven Special Economic Zone, including Sepik Plains, Madang, Paga Hill, The Battery Recycling Plant and Sea Park in Central Province, among others. International guest speakers from Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines are also sharing lessons from their own economic transformation.