Challenge to maritime provinces

ALLOW me space to urge provincial governments in maritime zones, such as West Sepik, Manus, East New Britian and New Ireland among others, to seriously consider onshore tuna processing by hosting at least one tuna processing plant under a joint venture arrangements to bring benefits to them rather than wait for other highly politicised projects like the failed 2007 Pacific Marine Industrial Zone (PMIZ).
Wewak, Madang and Lae are hosting all 100 per cent foreign-owned Càneries.
Why can’t respective provincial governments in other maritime zones seize the opportunity to partner their local landowner groups using their timber and mining equities and levies to undertake joint venture arrangements with interested foreign entities to fish and process tuna for canning or exports?
The PMIZ project, after 15 years, is yet to kick off and has lost so many opportunities for the country due to ongoing political and NGO-backed local resistance as well as cronyism within National Fisheries and Commerce and Industry Department affecting foresight to implement against odds.
So a better alternative is to make use of the tuna resources roaming within the exclusive economic zone in the next 10 years to a fully integrated stand-alone tuna processing plant. The “economies of scale” argument does not hold when a much sought after food item like tuna is strategically managed at the supply source to starve input to foreign based factories.
Otherwise the benefits associated with tuna resources will continue to end up in Thailand, Philippines, Taiwan, Japan and others.

Lavi Gib, Observer
NCD