Bank to focus on agriculture too, says country rep

By MAX ORAKA

THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) is looking at redirecting its focus to also provide support to the agriculture sector in the country.
ADB country director Said Zaidansyah said the bank was in discussions with the Government and Department of Agriculture and Livestock to provide the necessary support.
“We have not been involved so much in the agricultural sector but we are now in discussions with the secretary of Agriculture and Livestock to provide the requisite assistance,” he said.
To potentially support the sector, Zaidansyah said ADB was looking to help the food marketing chain in the country.
“PNG has huge potential in the agricultural sector in terms of improving its economy because currently there has been a lot of success in the food market,” he said.
“We have seen the importance of the agricultural sector such that the cocoa prices have hiked which is helping farmers and most importantly the sector.
“However, we are hoping to collaborate with the Government to further enhance agriculture development efforts.”
He said the aim was to provide the support that would align with the sector’s development needs and objectives to drive growth of the country’s economy.
He reaffirmed that ADB has been a development assistance to PNG in several sectors and they were keen to work with the Government to further grow the agriculture sector.
The ADB is a multilateral development financing institution dedicated to reduce poverty in Asia and the Pacific. It aims to improve the quality of people’s lives by providing loans and technical assistance for various development activities.