‘Coffee road’ opens up Okapa’s true potential

COVER STORY

THE Coffee Industry Corporation’s Productive Partnerships in Agriculture Project (CIC-PPAP) is nearing completion of a feeder access road in South Fore LLG, Okapa District of Eastern Highlands.
This is one of nine rural roads which PPAP coffee is constructing and improving through local contractor, Kassampy in Eastern Highlands.
Eight of these roads have been completed; one in Obura-Wonenara in the Eastern Highlands, two in Western Highlands and five in Jiwaka.
PPAP manager Potaisa Hombunaka, senior engineer Eric Aba, assistant coordinator for Component 2 Alphy Semy recently visited Ivingoi and Purosa in the district to see progress of work being done and also speak to the local community on how this development is assisting them.

The road is a 12.89km link from 2-Mile Yasubi to Wara Roots, Purosa.
Hombunaka said all road works were nearing completion except for the cement line drainage that needed some more work to complete it.
He explained that there has been a delay in bringing in the builders mix due to bad road conditions from the 7.3km Awande Junction to 2-Mile Yasubi as well on the Oakap Highway past the Kuru Mountain to Awande Junction.
Hombunaka urged the villagers from 2-Mile Yasubi to Invingoi and Purosa to take ownership of the road.
“It is not my road but your road so please take ownership and clean out debris in the drains and maintain it. This is something that has come during your time and will take another 20-plus years for something like this to happen again so please look after it well.”
He acknowledged the support of Coffee Connections Ltd and Highlands Organic Agriculture Cooperative (HOAC) as the CIC-PPAP lead partner and implementer of the coffee rehabilitation project including buying coffee at premium prices as HOAC is a certified group. The income earned from certified coffee is also used for social activities such as providing iron sheets to construct semi-permanent houses, water supplies and construction of school and health facilities.

“ It is not my road but your road so please take ownership and clean out debri in the drains and maintain it. This is something that has come during your time and will take another 20-plus years for something like this to happen again so please look after it well.”

Hombunaka stressed that the purpose of the project was to bring about change in the livelihoods of the people. “You are no longer walking up to 20 km to Kee’fu and Kuru Mountain on the Okapa Highway to get good prices, buyers are coming now to your village because of the road.”
He said the rehabilitation of the Yasubi to Takai Purosa road was the only one that has more kilometres rehabilitated (12.89km) compared to the other eight roads (5-6km) constructed.
Youth representative of Purosa, Amux Puka said the road has made it easier for them to sell their coffee and other garden produce. “Ol kofi baiya kam long haus dua na mipela kisim gutpela prais olsem olsem long Goroka long K4.50 long wan kilo drai kofi. Ol mama bilong mipela i save fultaim long katim kunai long bush long mekim haus, nau kapa i kam tru long HOAC na ol mama malolo. (Coffee buyers come right to our doorsteps and we are getting K4.50 per kilogram for our parchment coffee, similar to the Goroka price. Our mothers can now rest from hard work of cutting kunai for the houses, as we are receiving roofing iron through HOAC).”

Pastor Steve Yagasa of Ivingoi in the South Fore LLG of Okapa thanked CIC-PPAP for the road. He said they had struggled for more than 30 years and their prayers have now been answered.
“I want to give my heartfelt gratitude to CIC-PPAP for fixing this road for us. We, the people of Ivingoi, South Fore have struggled for more than 30 years to bring our coffee bags to the market in bad road conditions. This new road is a great relief to everyone,” the pastor said.
Marie Ricky, a local coffee farmer said when the road was in a bad state, mothers had to carry loads of garden produce including coffee and walk from Ivingoi to Kuru Mountain.
“We did not have any pulpers at that time and used stones to pulp our coffee.” Marie thanked CIC-PPAP and HOAC for removing stones from their hands as they can now use the coffee pulpers given through the project.
The coffee and road rehabilitation is a CIC project through the Department of Agriculture and Livestock
It is financed by a loan facility from World Bank and IFAD with support funding from the PNG Government.

• The author is the media liaison officer with the PNG Coffee Industry Corporation Ltd.