PNGWIB aims to boost tourism sector

By Memo Hauke
THE PNG Women In Business is looking at ways to connect fisheries, tourism and agriculture to lure tourists, says executive director Janet Sape.
Sape, pictured,  and two PNGWIB members returned last Saturday from attending the second Pacific agri-business conference in Apia, Samoa. The two members are Delilah Mitio and Felisa Inoino Avou.
“The conference was about attracting tourism through agriculture business in terms of bringing in food from the farm to the table and doing different cuisine to attract tourists,” she said.
“That kind of initiative has been promoted in different regions like in the Caribbean and in the Pacific as well.
“It has been very inspiring for us and we have returned with a lot of energy and ideas on how we can help our tourism sector as well as agriculture.
“Samoa and Fiji have coconut projects where they have their virgin oil, soap and lotion branded and packaged locally and supplied to England.
“There is nothing from the coconut that is wasted – from the husk to the leaf to the nut to the shell.
“We are doing that on ad-hoc basis here.
“They do it professionally and their human resource is more organised and their products are branded and internationally marketable and making profit.
“They do proper assessment and quality control and we are looking at those types of technical support and assistance for them to look to PNG to develop that.
“So we are very excited and looking forward to working with women in those areas.”
Avou said: “I learnt that in all of the restaurants and hotels in the pacific, it is a must that a local meal must be in the menu.
“We have 22 provinces that are abundantly blessed with different varieties of food and our government must make it a regulation that every hotel and restaurant in Papua New Guinea must provide a traditional meal on the menu for customers to eat.”
Mito said: “I have seen that the major problems we have in the country are transportation, labeling, packaging and quality control.
“We have the resources but we need our leaders to help us purchase those technical assets to give us the finish product before we market it internationally.
“We can produce, do all those and sell the finished product.”
Sape managed to make some contacts with stakeholders and donors in the Pacific and the people who came from different funding agencies such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Technical Centre for Agricultural Rural Cooperation.
“They are people that sponsor those kinds of event and project. One of the major constraints and the reasons they have about PNG even though they have been in the country is the law and order issue we have.”
They would like to come and host this type of event but the security of the delegates being here is too risky and they cannot risk that,” Sape said.
According to PNGWIB wesbsite, the group empowers women in business to achieve success by providing multiple opportunities.
It’s focus is to challenge Gender Stereotypes by empowering women who are strong and determined.
They are also committed to empower and nourish women for continuous growth, development and increase the number of Papua New Guinea women in decision-making and leadership positions for a balanced society.