Lae biscuit eyeing overseas export

 

The Lae Biscuit Company based in Lae, Morobe Province and proud manufacturer of several biscuit brands that identify with PNG is aiming to sell its products overseas.

 

On the eve of the country’s 48 independence, the company received international accreditation as a Food Safety System Certification 22000.

 

This accreditation is issued by S-A-I Global and this accreditation helps Lae Biscuit to meet international food industry requirements.

 

Company General Manager, Edwin Elmer Wong, says in a statement the company takes great pride in being the first PNG-owned company to be given the Food Safety System Certification 22000 certification.

 

He says from a statement that being accredited means from the supply of raw materials to line production and finished products, including the up-skilling of manpower to deliver the end product they have to be food safety conscious.

 

Wong says it has been a progressive process since the opening of the state-of-the-art Lae Biscuit Company factory completed in October 2017.

 

In 2021, the Lae Biscuit Company along with 10 other food manufacturing companies in Papua New Guinea, met internationally recognized and approved food safety and control measures when awarded the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point or  (HACCP) certification by the Papua New Guinea Certification Services through the National Institute of Standards and Industrial Technology (NISIT).

 

Lae biscuit says that process took the Company three years to achieve the HACCP certification.

 

Lae Biscuit Company Chairman, Ian Chow, in acknowledging the achievement by the company, said this is such a milestone accomplishment. He thanked the managers and staff for working tirelessly behind the scenes and putting together all requirements to achieve the Food Safety System Certification 22000.

 

In the 2023 Australian NRL season, Lae Biscuit Company was able to get an advertisement on the Sport Shorts of the Cronulla Sharks players.

Hela presents position paper on Porgera

Governor for Hela Province, Hon Philip Undialu on Friday Sept 08, 2023, presented his province’s position paper pertaining to the Porgera Mine Community Development Agreement (CDA), to the Mining Minister Hon Sir Ano Pala.

Papua New Guinea's mining regulator has reported.

The Mineral Resources Authority says the presentation was done at the Airways Hotel in Port Moresby, witnessed by Vice Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on State Negotiations Hon Jimmy Maladina, Vice Minister for Mining Hon James Donald, Chairman of the State Negotiating Team (SNT) Dairi Vele, Secretary for the Department of Mineral Policy & Geohazards Management (DMPGM), Harry Kore, and the Mineral Resources Authority’s (MRA) Executive Manager for Development Coordination Division, Andrew Gunua.

Governor Undialu was accompanied by key landowners of Gas-To-Electricity (GTE) facility and well-heads, which has been supplying 70 mega-watts of power to the Porgera mine for the last 30 years. He said the Hela Province hosts almost 70 km of power lines that supply power to Porgera mine.

Hon Undialu said his government had raised 16 issues and proposals in the position paper on behalf of his stakeholders. 

However, he said some of the issues were commercial in nature and would be discussed in appropriate forums, while some will be discussed during the CDA process.

The leader said the 16 issues and proposals had been condensed into two proposals for the government to consider.

 He said option one was the ‘Porgera & Gas-To-Electricity (GTE) Project Integration.

“We are now proposing for a project integration or unitization,” said Governor Undialu. 

He said for instance in the PNGLNG project, all supporting facilities of the project, in Hela, Southern Highlands, Western, Gulf and Central Provinces, are all integrated, where we all work together in benefits sharing arrangements.

He said if this proposal was accepted, his government and stakeholders expect to negotiate with the state on benefits such as equity, royalties, Business Development Grant (BDG), Infrastructure Development Grant (IDG) and other social benefits.

Governor Undialu said the second proposal was to treat the GTE facility as ‘stand-alone project, and have its Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) reviewed, and ownership be transferred to the provincial government and landowners, on a 50/50 basis subject to old Mining Development Contract (MDC) Clause 6.4.

He said clause 6.4 of the old MDC says that on the 10th anniversary of the mine’s operations, the power plant would be transferred over to the State. 

Hon Undialu said the mine started operations in 1992, which means that the GTE facility should have been transferred to state in 2002 which did not happen.

He said if the GTE is transferred to them, the provincial government and landowners would ensure the social security provided.

Minister Pala on receiving the position paper from Hon Undialu, said this papers would be considered together with papers presented by all other stakeholders integrated into a formula for negotiations soon.

Telikom Limited signs cloud PABX agreement with Amboya (Isreali company)

Telikom Limited, PNG’s 100% nationally owned telecommunications company, signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement with Amboya Investment  on 01/06/20230, at the Hilton hotel, Port Moresby, to be the exclusive provider of Cloud PABX system  in PNG and the Solomon Islands. 

The agreement will see Telikom Limited leveraging its telecommunications network and infrastructure to deliver Cloud PABX (Private Automatic Branch Exchange) or hosted PABX which enable customers to communicate with anyone anywhere on any network at the comfort of your mobile phones. 

Amos Goldman (left) Managing Director for Amboya Investments (Israel) & Amos Tepi (right) CEO for Telikom Ltd

Traditional PABXs and Business Systems are capital intensive and incur high on-going operational cost. 

Mr. Tepi says “Telikom’s new Partnership with Amboya will  eliminate Capital cost such as equipment, cabling and the ongoing maintenance and support cost”.

This partnership marks an important event for Telikom Limited and Amboya considering the signing took place at the 27th Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association (PITA) AGM, Business Forum and Expo. 

With this agreement, Amboya’s support gives a new lease of life for Telikom’s fixed (voice) business which is globally declining due to mobile evolution. 

Both Amboya and Telikom are committed to delivering high-quality services to their customers and are excited about the opportunities this partnership will bring. 

Amboya’s managing director Mr. Amos Goldman said “Ämboya has worked with former Telikom PNG to now Telikom Limited under the new merged entity and have come a long way to understanding the challenges long enough to develop a product that can address the declining trend of the fixed line business’’.

One of the product managers explained how simple the product works. He demonstrated that  apps (application) of the Cloud phone will be installed instantly bearing an office land line number - either existing or new number. 

He further explained that the office/s will have IP (internet protocol) Phones installed on existing infrastructure without the need to build new. 

He said “with the Hosted PABX in Telikom’s multi-cloud infrastructure, our customers will be able to call or receive calls from anywhere around the world.

Telikom’s call Centre is running on Cloud PABX and the company is at advance stage of signing up major customers.

Mr. Tepi validated the demonstration show saying “what’s more rewarding is that our customers will save big since calls to their offices will be at local call cost (10 toea) and Telikom also will not incur interconnection cost”.

This exclusive partnership is extended to Solomon Island through its subsidiary company in Bemobile Limited.

Teachers Savings and Loans Society pays bonus dividend

 

Commemorating 50 years of operations from 1972 to 2022, the 63,000 Teachers Savings and Loans Society members will be paid an additional two percent one-off bonus today Thursday.

TISA Group Chairman Gabriel Tai said today.

The society has paid around K30 million as dividends to members and this is the biggest additional interest paid to members.

The two percent payment totals around K6 million and should be available in their Yumi Card accounts by tomorrow Friday.

Tai attributed the financial results and improvements in TISA 2022 financial performance to consistent and focused decision making for its members. 

The total interest paid to members  for the 2022 financial year is nine percent.

PNG seasonal worker to earn K59 per hour picking tomatoes

A young woman from Imbonggu, Southern Highlands has been successful to pick tomatoes at a farm in Australia.

This comes under the seasonal workers program and Stephanie Kereme from the Imbonggu Youth Foundation is elated about this  successful facilitation.

Kereme said Dianna Philip ,25, from Iombi village in Imbonggu has received her contract and signed it on June 01, 2023.

Dianna Philip (l) Photo Stephanie Kereme 

Philip did years 10 and 12 but did not further her education in colleges. She now has this nine months employment contract with MADEC Australia.

Contract facilitator Kereme said Philip would be working at a Tomato farm in Victoria, Australia earning AU$26.73 per hour.

That is about K59.89 per hour in PNG currency. 

The minimum wage in PNG is less than K5 per hour.

Philip from the Wanep Tribe applied with the batch one group when data recruitment started in September 2022 and she is the second successful applicant assisted by the Imbonggu Youth Foundation.

Kereme who says she is using her own resources to facilitate the seasonal worker program is excited about this success by the Imbonggu Youth Foundation program.

"Slowly and surely Imbonggu is flying," she said.

PNG pilot secures a home loan through a broker

 

Have you heard about Asigau Mortgage  Brokers?

Well now you've heard about them.

Simply a special service company that acts between the home loan applicant and the  bank.

You see, how many of of us have time to prepare documents, make an appointment or visit the bank, your superannuation home equity, let alone home estate owners. 

The process is tiring and long but Asigau Mortgage Brokers can manage that for you while you concentrate on your job.

They charge a minimal fee for their services. 

Here is another success story for them..a special day celebeated on Friday May 26, as we guide another fellow Papua New Guinean 🇵🇬 to sign his approved Home Loan documents with Kina Bank Ltd. 

Mr Waita Kama is an Airline Pilot for Air Niugini currently serving as a B737 First Officer and rarely has time available to pursue the goal of owning a home. 

Well, surprise! surprise! We assisted make this possible for him by getting his proposal across in 4 days and his documents signed. 

Thank you to Mr. John Rifu (Senior Home Loans Officer) who made it seamless for us to get this through from start to finish. 

Mr. Kama secures a top of the range Elly Build High-set 3x Bedroom House from Arminko PNG LTD and 600sqm of land in an established estate. 

A great home with heaps of land.

 For us, it is what we strive to achieve - another Papua New Guinean getting the home they deserve in their own country. 

Kina Bank announced in February 2021 it has partnered with the country’s first mortgage broker, Asigau Mortgage Brokers Ltd, to make the process of finding and applying for a new home loan as simple as possible. 

An MOU was signed between Kina and Asigau Mortgage Brokers in December 2020.

Asigau Mortgage Brokers will offer customers independent, expert advice on the best home loan options, guide customers through the home loan application process and help complete paperwork.

 Asigau will operate as an intermediary institution, liaising with banks on the customer’s behalf and allowing them the peace of mind of knowing their application will arrive at Kina Bank accurate and complete.

For assistance with plans to secure your first home email the AMB Team at enquiries@asigau.com.pg or call us on 7853 9833.

Reach out them...

Air Niugini flight returns after take off due to engine shutdown

 Passengers and flight crew on an Air Niugini De Havilland  Dash 8-300 aircraft flying from Port Moresby to Goroka yesterday Friday had to return to Port Moresby's Jackson's Airport after takeoff.

A passenger on board posted on social media upon returning to Jackson's a video and picture about the engine shutdown  which prompted quite a few comments from the public being concerned. 

The company says it was due to one engine being shutdown.

All crew and passengers were safe and the company has commended its flight crew for initiating  the appropriate actions according to the standard operating procedure.

"The prompt and professional response of the airline crew, in accordance with established protocols, ensured the safety and well-being of all passengers and crew on board," Acting CEO Gary Seddon said in statement.

The flight crew performed an engine shutdown and having sufficiently reduced the landing weight by burning fuel in a holding pattern, safely returned the aircraft to Jackson's Airport.

The aircraft departing Port Moresby for Goroka at about 9.30am experienced a technical issue with the Left-Hand engine.

Air Niugini has assured the travelling public that passenger safety and well-being are their top priorities, and they would like to reassure their valued customers that all necessary precautions were taken to handle this situation.

Air Niugini's Boeng 767 jet among aircraft at Jackson's Airport  Photo by Air Niugini 

Recently the national flag carrier has received criticisms from travelling public about flight delays and few safety queries. 

The CEO Bruce Alabaster was recently terminated with an acting CEO Gary Seddon appointed.

The company had also recently announced its plans for refleeting.

Responding  to concerns from travelling  public about flight delays and safety concerns, the company had been active on its social media to spin critics perception about the company, promoting its engineering personnel experience, what they do and their safety track record.

 Air Niugini says with the current engine shutdwon experience, its highly trained and experienced flight crew successfully managed the issue.

It is committed to adhering to the highest industry safety standards, and they have already commenced a thorough investigation to determine the root cause of the engine issue, that necessitated the shutdown. 

"We are working closely with the aircraft and engine supplier, and relevant authorities to ensure a comprehensive analysis of the engine issue.

Air Niugini’s Acting Chief Executive Officer, Gary Seddon said: “I would like to express our sincere gratitude to the crew members of PX160 who handled the situation with utmost professionalism and expertise, as well as our passengers for their understanding and cooperation during this unforeseen event.  

"We are also thankful for the support and guidance provided by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and other relevant organizations.”

"Air Niugini remains dedicated to maintaining the highest level of safety and operational excellence across our fleet. 

"We have robust safety management systems in place and will continue to prioritize the training and well-being of our crew members. 

"Our passengers can continue to have confidence in Air Niugini as we uphold our commitment to delivering safe and reliable air travel," he said.

Nasfund member contributions account update delay

Nasfund says due to technical issues relating to the change in the file formats by Bank South Pacific’s system upgrade, member superannuation contributions since then are yet to be allocated into member accounts.

It says the Fund Administrator has identified this technical issue and has been working with BSP to ensure that this is rectified to allow member contributions to be allocated into member accounts.

Nasfund photo

" Testing is being carried out, with updates to member contributions to commence once all issues have been resolved," it said in a statement on its social. 

"If you have made deposits within this period, please forward your remittance advice to your respective Nasfund account manager."

Nasfund has apologised for the inconvenience caused and assured members that regular updates would be provided through the account managers.

This year the superfund  announced an audited results of K256 million profit after tax for the year 2022, approved by the trustee and board.

Its net asset value is at K6.3 billion.

The 650,000 members were credited 4.3 percent.

Moitaka power station recommissioned

 PNG Power Limited (PPL) has announced the recommissioning of the Moitaka Power Station in Port Moresby.

The Moitaka Power Station was established in 1980 and has been a reliable source of electricity in Port Moresby for several decades until it was decommissioned in 2019 after several Independent Power Producers (IPP) were introduced into the Port Moresby Grid, PNG Power says in a statement.

Initially, the Moitaka Power Station had a station output of 16 Megawatts (MW) from two Hitachi Zosen Z40 Diesel Engines (Unit 1 & 2). 

Later, its capacity was increased by an additional 15 MW with the installation of a GE LM2500 (GT2) in 1990, and two Mirrlees Blackstone MK16KV Diesel Engines (Unit 3 & 4) were added with an individual capacity of 8 MW each.

The Moitaka units are high-inertia thermal engines with a significant rotational mass. 

This means that they can store energy and respond slowly to changes in demand, making them suitable for stabilising the grid.

 Their characteristics make them suitable for the Port Moresby grid application, where they can complement hydro generation.

 Although hydro generation is a renewable and flexible source of electricity, it depends on water availability and environmental factors. 

High-inertia thermal engines can provide backup power and grid stability, especially during peak hours or emergencies.

The decision to recommission the Moitaka Power Station was made after thoroughly analysing the Port Moresby grid's energy needs.

 Despite the decommissioning of the Moitaka Power Station in 2019 to focus on PNG Power's "Least Cost" and "Fuel Switch" plans, other energy sources could not regulate the grid. 

As a result, the PNG Power Board made the decision to recommission the station in the last quarter of 2022.

As of May 19, 2023, Moitaka Unit 3 is available, and it can be safely dispatched with 6MW of power. 

The recommissioning of the Moitaka Thermal Power Station will provide much-needed backup power and stability to the Port Moresby grid. 

PPL says it is committed to ensuring that the Port Moresby grid has sufficient backup power and stability when required. 

The recommissioning of the Moitaka Thermal Station is a significant step towards achieving this objective.

Deputy Chief Executive Officer of PPL Nehemaiah Naris, who was present to start up the first recommissioned unit has  thanked all the stakeholders who contributed to the successful recommissioning of the Moitaka Power Station, especially the hardworking PPL restoration team. 

The PPL says its restoration team will work hard to restore Unit 4 to bring additional capacity to the Port Moresby Grid in the coming months.

PPL is confident that the recommissioning of the Moitaka Thermal Station will improve power reliability in the Port Moresby Grid. 

It remains committed to providing reliable and affordable electricity to the Port Moresby grid consumers.

Remote Eastern Highlands community receives electric lawn mower

The community at Mibu in the Eastern Highlands were not able to access air services for sometime.

This was due to soft ground on the runway.

But MAF who had been been serving remote communities for 70 years has finally landed at Mibu again with a huge surprise.

It says on it social media page, the Goroka based pilot Brad Venter flew the New Tribes Mission (Ethnos 360) there to drop off a new lawn mover.

The lawn mover is said to be the first of its kind in Papua New Guinea.

"It's a rechargeable electric heavy duty mower that will be charged by solar. The first in PNG," MAF says.

" This should help the community keep the airstrip in good condition.

"This is critical because the airstrip is a lifeline for them and enables the missionaries to get in and out easily which really helps the work they are doing there."

Abus na Kumu promotes savings culture

We can change Papua New Guinea if we believe and promote culture that benefits our lives, a culture that ultimately makes us content to live peacefully among others. 

Saving money to invest in durable assets or will become our social security is critical for us.

Modern money may not be our traditional asset and culture  for trade and business, so we are introduced to its importance in trade for survival.

But in this rapid changing global village, we have no choice but to adapt and value the importance of money- more so the value in saving.

Abus Na Kumu a PNG owned business is taking the lead in promoting savings culture.

They should be commended for this and imagine every business proactively does it for their employees.

We would have a society with thousands or millions of people who are rich just by having additional cash in their pockets or bank accounts and who do not just live off a fortnightly pay packet.

 Well Abus na Kumu owned by former rugby union star and PNG Pukpuk Richard Mark officially signed up their entire work force including management and their business to a savings and loan company.

Mark says Nambawan Savings & Loan Society Limited have been their nambawan corporate customer from the beginning as well.

Over the time Abus na Kumu provided their services, they’ve also been exposed to some of Nambawan Savings and Loans product informations and they are pleased to open their employees savings accounts.

The NSLS team visited the Abus na Kimu base at Port Moresby's Kennedy Estate and signed up all their team members.

Picture by Abus na Kumu Facebook 

They now look forward to building a savings culture.

Good luck to the Abus na Kumu team but for all of us, developing and practising a savings culture is critical for us.

Talk to our children when they are at tender age of ten and when they are in their teenage years they are deeply grounded.

When they are starting their twenties they may alrrady have equity for a loan, a car and can access business loan.

They can achieve many other things because they have a savings as security.

Let's do it...

Avoid queues get online

With the advancement in ICT, many services are being offered conveniently for customers online.

Papua New Guinea is playing catch up but in essence its making leaps and bounds. 

This advetisment by Kina Bank in Papua New Guinea ultimately resonates the acessibility  of online services available to customers

It's competitor the Bank South Pacific which has a huge footprint in Papua New Guinea and the Asia Pacific had been accused quite often for failing to assist customer banking needs at branches on time and thus having long queues and customers can take half or pretty much the whole day to be at the bank.

This advertisement by Kina Bank can mean jump online to do banking at ease avoiding long lines or join Kina and not  stand in lines at the other bank.

Happy banking ....

Tabubil to Telefomin road to connect by Christmas 2023

The Tabubil-Telefomin road completion will impact businesses in 2024. 

Will it be different in Telefomin after the road is delivered in December 25 2023, yes or no?

BY KEVIN BONG

Minister Solan Mirisim has bravely calendared the Prime Minister James Marape to overnight in Telefomin on the 25th of December 2023. The entourage is expected to drive from Kiunga to Telefomin by road for the first time. As promised James Marape will deliver the Tabubil-Telefomin road to the people of Telefomin. This emancipation is the brave focus of these leaders many months ahead of their busy schedule. This clearly indicates their determination and seriousness to liberate their people through accessibility. As this access road creeps closer to Telefomin I am beginning to retract my feeling away from just the road and connectivity and think about Mirisim-Marape connectivity as a package. Thus, we should have an underlying reason for us to receive this road from James Marape then to just ‘receive the road’. 

The construction of this new road into remote area of Telefomin will trigger significant impacts on the local community and environment. The local leaders, Telefomin DDA and the government must be looking ahead to promote socio economic viability with its people to celebrate with their road. Here are some basic things that the Telefomin people can do to prepare for the new road with the help of their leaders and government.:

Elias Nanau with dancers from Telefomin during the swearing in of TDDC members in 2020

What I am listing are simple and basic but has a lot of weight.

1. Plan for increased traffic: With the construction of the new road into Telefomin, there will likely be an increase in traffic to the area. The current roads are muddy, bumpy and substandard. This could impact the local economy as well as the environment. The community and leaders can prepare for this by developing plans for managing traffic flow and ensuring that roads and infrastructure are in good condition. Develop better town roads with better and sizable pebbles from a quarry. 

2. Develop emergency response plans: The new road could also bring new risks, such as accidents and natural disasters. The community and leaders should develop emergency response plans to ensure that they are prepared to deal with any emergencies that may arise. This will require a detail and systematic support from appropriate governments.

3. Protect the environment: The construction of the road could also have an impact on the local environment, such as deforestation and soil erosion. The community and leaders should work to protect the environment by implementing sustainable practices and protecting important habitats and species. Not only that but the boundaries and corridors of this road must be carefully demarcated and protected. 

4. Plan for economic opportunities: The new road will bring economic opportunities to the area, such as increased tourism and trade. The community and leaders should plan for these opportunities by developing businesses and infrastructure to support them. The government’s vision of SME spread must truly flourish here.

5. Engage with the government and contractors: The government and contractors responsible for the construction of the road should be engaged in discussions with the community to ensure that their concerns and needs are being heard and addressed. This will help to ensure that the road is built in a way that is beneficial to the community and minimizes negative impacts.

The mastermind of this road is Solan Mirisim, no doubt. The administration of DDA and LLG must propagate and offer the current MP the support to think about economic viability and road sustainability.

The earlier cry of Telefomin, “ Give me the road and leave me alone” can not become a reality if the above are not addressed.

Whilst the leaders are summoned to deliver this road with its impact, the people must show course towards this new infrastructure and the leaders’ effort.

Telefomin people must be willing to embrace this road with care and make good use.

PNG Internal Revenue Commission prevents corruption by availing real time information online

 IRC LAUNCHES CoC SELF-VALIDATION APP ONGOOGLE PLAY STORE.

The Papua New Guinea (PNG) Internal Revenue Commission (IRC) has launched a self-validation mobile phone application to authenticate Certificate of Compliances (CoC). 

The digital product was launched at a small but significant ceremony at the IRC Headquarters in Port Moresby 

Thursday, witnessed by staff and the local software developer, Minsoft. 

At the launch, Commissioner General Sam Koim acclaimed this as another momentous achievement for IRC to become a digitally transformed organization. 

The CoC is a document issued by the IRC to taxpayers who enter into a contract in which eligible payments are expected to exceed K5000/per annum. 

Over the years, CoC fraud has increased. Investigations revealed that taxpayers and a few IRC officers have been colluding to produce fake CoCs. Since 2020, 287 cases of CoC fraud have been detected and investigated, resulting in 6 staff being terminated and three prosecuted successfully. 

Whilst committing resources to continue investigating these cases, the Commission invested in this product as a corruption prevention measure. 

Mr Koim said, “corruption, especially at the bureaucratic and administrative levels, flourishes when ‘motive’ and ‘opportunity’ meet. We are addressing ‘motive’ by improving terms and conditions and penalizing those doing the wrong thing. With automation and introduction of digital tools like this, we remove the ‘opportunity’ for human discretion.” 

IRC engaged Minsoft, a local software company, to develop an application named “Track Tru-IRC”, which is now available on Google Play Store https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tracktru. The CoC QR code solution will automate theauthorization of the printed CoC from SIGTAS (Standard Integrated Tax Accounting System) andprovide an effective and efficient avenue for the paying authorities to validate the CoC documenton presentation.

The software developer, Leonard Wanusim of Minsoft, stated that the application has two major software components. The first component is the Web Management Portal, which allows IRC staff to generate the CoC with a QR code embedded in the certificate. The other real-time software module is the ‘Track Tru-IRC’ mobile app on the Google Play Store, allowing users to validate a CoC document by simply scanning the entire document with the QR Code. After the document is scanned and validated, the result is transmitted to the Web Management Portal, where the IRC staff can monitor it. The transmitted data includes the GPS location, making it easy to find the people or businesses who do not comply.

The Commissioner General urged taxpayers to keep their compliance up to date so that they will  have no problem obtaining a COC. COC is free and autogenerated if the taxpayers' compliance status is current. It is an offence to produce and use fake COCs.

Contractors and paying authorities are urged to download the new App from Google Play Store and start using it to scan and validate CoCs.

IRC has also provided a CoC Lookup on our website for paying authorities and taxpayers to confirm the authenticity of CoCs. See CoC lookup | myIRCFor information about CoCs, please see Certificate Of Compliance | https://irc.gov.pg/tax-tools/certificate-of-compliance-lookup

 

NBC Bougainville jumps on WhatsApp to share news

 Thursday 16th March

NBC NEWS COMMMUNITY

NBC Bougainville is pleased to announce a new initiative we are embarking on in disseminating our 'news' service through Whatsapp.

We are introducing a 'NBC Bougainville News Community' on Whatsapp.

This community is simply our added effort into reaching as many people as possible who may be outside our radio frequency but inside a mobile network coverage and have acces to the internet and use whatsapp.

Content on this platform is specifically our daily news bulletins in audio form. 

It's an extension of the same news bulletin broadcasted on our radio service on 95.5FM.

The community encourages feedbacks, news pointers and tips and alerts that can further help with our news gathering and dissemination across Bougainville.

If you are an avid follower of news and current issues in Bougainville we encourage you to join this community.

You can do so by asking us to add you to the platform by sending us your phone number.

Those outside the region and abroad are also encouraged to subscribe to keep abreast with what's happening back home and to join in on whatever conversation.

Text us your number on 74248199, or inbox this page to add you to the 'NBC News Whatsapp Community'.

You can also let yourself in via this link

 https://chat.whatsapp.com/DJ9c5TL6bs3CiCi46mPZbA

We hope you appreciate our efforts.

Total Energies to provide scholarship for Gulf students

 

BY DR FRANCIS HUALOPMOMI

The Department of Higher Education Research Science and Technology and the Port Moresby Technical College signed an MoA with the Total Energy yesterday (Friday 10 March, 2023) to train and educate Gulf students. 

The MoA allows for Total Energy to provide full scholarship to Gulf students to undertake TVET programmes at the Port Moresby Technical College. 

This arrangement will extend to other institutions as part of Total Energy's contribution to Gulf and PNG in preparation for the up coming second Gulf Papua LNG.

This MoA is also part of the MoU DHERST signed with Total Energy in 2021 under my leadership.

The  construction for the Papua LNG with Total as the major developer is expected to commence in 2024.

NCD honors its obligation to pay Central Province share of GST

PORT MORESBY, WEDNESDAY 01ST, MARCH 2023: 

The National Capital District Commission (NCDC) authority has honoured its legal and financial obligation to the Central Provincial Government with over K3.1 million.

The payments are from the NCD Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue collected for January and February this year (2023).

It has not been easy for Central Province going through much legal battles and an amendment to NCDC Act was successfully passed in Parliament.

This was led by former Central Governor Robert Agarobe.

The payment made on Tuesday was a double celebration for the Central Governor, Hon. Rufina Peter after having won her election petition, NCDC media release says.

Witnessed by City Manager Ravu Frank, her NCD counterpart, Governor, Hon. Powes Parkop presented the dummy cheque to her at the City Hall.

Speaking during the presentation, Governor Parkop assured fellow Governor Peter that NCDC is willing to give whatever that is due to the Central Government under the Law.

Governor Parkop said despite the court cases and other issues with the Law, they will continue delivering to the people what is required.

After the successful amendment to the NCDC Act 2001, Governor Parkop had gone to court to challenge the passing of the bill.

Despite this he said that both NCD and Central Provincial Governments could share their development road maps and find a middle ground on how they can share resources and ideas for the betterment of Central and NCD.

“Court and legal issues can continue, but nothing will stop our working relationship and understanding. We can still work together; we don’t want to have bad relationships,” Parkop said.

Governor Parkop thanked his fellow Central Governor for making time available to receive the payment on behalf of her Government.

Central Governor Peter thanked Governor Parkop and the City Manager for the funding.

She said she was looking forward to working in partnership with NCD for the good of the people.

Watch video below former Cental Province Governor Robert Agarobe explaining how and why he had fought to acquire Central Province share of GST from NCD

Accident Investigation Commission probes Air Niugini

By Rocky Issou

The Acting Board Chairman of the PNG Accident Investigation Commission (AIC), Captain Aria Bouraga, has announced that the AIC has commenced an investigation into a serious incident involving a Fokker 70 aircraft that experienced cabin pressurisation event on descent into Jacksons Airport, Port Moresby earlier this week on Monday February 20, 2023 at about 4pm.

The aircraft was reportedly operating a scheduled domestic flight from Jacksons Airport, Port Moresby to Kagamuga Airport, Mt Hagen, Western Highlands Province when it conducted an air return back to Port Moresby due to weather conditions not being suitable for a landing in Mt Hagen. During descent into Port Moresby, the aircraft reportedly sustained a pressurization issue.

There were a total of 67 persons on board which included 2 infants. On disembarking the aircraft at Jacksons Airport, a passenger of the occurrence flight alerted Air Niugini Customer Service that a few passengers from the flight were bleeding from the ears and nose. On assessing the injured passengers, Air Niugini Customer Service then activated a response plan and had the injured passengers transported to Pacific International Hospital for further medical assessment.

It was reported that a total of 22 persons were injured; 7 persons had serious injuries and were admitted, 6 persons were under review, and 9 persons were discharged from the hospital.

“We have had 4 occurrences in this month alone and the AIC has been working around the clock to ensure that all accident site investigations are conducted fully and best practices for appropriate safety lessons are learned. I urge all operators to take proper precautions and ensure that appropriate safety standards are maintained.” Captain Bouraga said.

Captain Bouraga has stated that the AIC has maintained its compliance with its mandate and Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation for the conduct of investigations and will do its best to maintain

these standards and quality, considering the significant budget constraints for its operations.

Lihir Investment Trust Fund

 

BY RICHARD MARU

PNG Minister for International Trade

For the first time in over 24 years after approving the Pacific Balance Fund (PBF) and the Pacific Property Trust as Unit Trust Schemes, the Securities Commission of Papua New Guinea (SCPNG) today approved the Lihirian Investment Fund Unit Trust as a new Unit Trust Scheme in the local securities industry. The wholly owned subsidiary of Mineral Resources Lihir (MLR) Capital Limited, the MRL Funds Management Limited made history by being granted two Capital Licenses by SCPNG. As the Minister for International Trade and Investment, I made the presentation of the two licenses- a Trustee Mangers License and Funds Management License to MLR Funds Management Limited today.

I want to congratulate the Board and Management of MRL Capital Limited for achieving this very significant milestone. The Lihirian Investment Fund Unit Trust was granted the two licenses based on their performance and on their record where they managed the fund from the initial value of K60 million in 2015 to K700 million today. This represents an annual growth rate of an average of 10 per cent of this fund which is a very impressive record of performance. I am also happy that MLR Capital Limited out of their annual profit of K100 million to K200 million uses 25% to support community projects in Lihir especially in health, education and infrastructure.

On behalf of the Marape-Rosso Government, I encouraged Lihirian Investment Fund Unit Trust to also look at managing funds from other individuals and companies around the country apart from Lihir. The people, especially our mothers and fathers and our SMEs are looking for low-risk and high yielding investment opportunities and the Lihirian Investment Fund Unit Trust presents a very good investment vehicle for them.

I also encouraged Lihirian Investment Fund Unit Trust to partner the Marape-Rosso Government to invest in low-risk investment opportunities in the Special Economic Zones that will be announced in May this year. One of the reasons why I am excited about today is if the Lihirian Investment Fund Unit Trust can grow these funds, they can take up investments in high yielding low-risk agriculture investments. I would really like to encourage the Lihirian Investment Fund Unit Trust to seriously look at long-term agriculture investments in Papua New Guinea. Our country needs billions of Kina in new investments to grow the economy so supporting high performing funds managed by competent fund managers is a key policy agenda of the Marape-Rosso Government to support economic growth.

I want to also encourage other landowners in areas with resource projects to follow the successful path of the MLR Capital Limited.

UPNG students complete industrial training

 Eight students from the University of Papua New Guinea received their Industrial Training certificates from Newcrest Lihir after completing an eight-week mid-semester Industrial Training program recently.

The third-year students - Dale Konae, Daniel Wamaingu, Geses Agua, Jerethy Rapenda, Jonathan Kaul, Nemaiah Sebastian, Steward Giko and Violet Mcmiul - are among 23 students from UPNG’s Earth Science department trained under the program since its inception in 2021.

This work experience and professional development opportunity allowed the students to gain valuable industrial work exposure and enhanced safety skills. Senior staff from Lihir’s Mine Technical Services Department supervised and mentored them during the training engagement.

UPNG Earth Science Department Divisional Head, Dr Joseph Espi, highlighted in his appreciation remarks that industrial work exposure is an integral component of the university’s Undergraduate Earth Science Degree Program, saying programs and training opportunities provided by corporate organisations and world-class mining companies such as Newcrest Mining Lihir’s Young Talent program play an important role in developing young Papua New Guineans.

Dr Espi thanked Newcrest Mining for its continuous support and partnership in empowering earth science students from UPNG through on-the-job experience.

Newcrest Lihir’s Human Resources Manager, Alex Rogea, said UPNG’s Earth Science Department had been the main talent source for Lihir’s geologists’ talent pipeline since the inception of the Lihir Mine Project.

He thanked Dr Espi and the university for the partnership, which enables students to gain the necessary exposure required to set them up for success when transitioning into the industry.

“Apart from the technical exposure in mining, we also provide students with the opportunity to learn and develop skills in time management, teamwork, presentation and in building self-confidence. These are necessary to build our future leaders,” 

Furthermore, Mr Rogea extended his gratitude to Lihir’s Mine Technical Services team leaders for their commitment in developing the young PNG talent in the Technical Expertise of Geology in Mining.

“With your support and guidance, the students are well placed to successfully complete university studies and transition into the industry,” he said.

Newcrest Country Manager, Stanley Kome Komunt, congratulated the eight students for choosing Newcrest Lihir as their ideal place to learn and develop skills.

“With Newcrest being one of the largest gold mining companies in the world and with Lihir being the largest mine in Papua New Guinea, it’s a great learning place for young talent to build their career,” he said.

Mr Komunt added that Newcrest Mining supports PNGs priority to develop healthy, educated, and skilled people.

“The partnership between UPNG’s Earth Science and Newcrest will go a long way in building the country’s human resources as stipulated in Papua New Guinea’s Vision 2050,” he said.