Land secured for airport expansion

THE Department of Lands and Physical Planning has approved the use of an additional 35 hectares of land for the expansion of Vanimo Airport in West Sepik.
Lands and Physical Planning Minister Justin Tkatchenko issued a direct grant to Civil Aviation Minister Alfred Manasseh yesterday, saying the Government was working with agencies to ensure that land was secured for economic development.
Tkatchenko said the land was approved to benefit West Sepik through economic empowerment.
“Let’s allow the land to be accessed and utilised for the benefit of our people, especially important projects such as in West Sepik,” he said.
Manasseh said there were some difficulties in getting some of the vital pieces of land for public use.
“As the population grows and more people start to travel, it will require bigger aeroplanes to land in some of those airports. And that requires the expansion of the airports,” he said.
Manasseh said some people still could not understand the importance of having land available for airport expansion.