Council waiting on submission to amend bill

THE Micro Small Medium Enterprise (MSME) council is still waiting on its submission on the Investment Promotion Authority (IPA) amendment bill and the reserve activities list to be tabled in Parliament.
Founder James Gore said they had been waiting since March 2019 for the IPA Act amendment bill.
“The council made a submission on behalf of MSMEs for the legislative framework to empower Papua New Guineans and we are still waiting,” he said.
“Probably there are other influencers. We need to wake up and make a stand. There are people who are coming around and influencing policy in their favour.
“If we remain silent, the status quo will remain.”
He said they were pushing the reserve activities list but it did not mean that they opposing foreign investors and foreign direct investment.
Council president Desmond Yaninen previously told The National that parliament should discuss the proposed reserve activity in the August sitting.
Yaninen said the Government should not continue to pay lip service but to protect the sector.
“It was reported on social media that foreigners were now running second-hand shops in Kimbe,” he said.
“These kinds of businesses should be reserved for Papua New Guineans. What kind of visas and work permits did foreigners get to come to PNG and (run) second-hand shops or tucker shops?
“Are they registered with the Investment Promotion Authority (IPA) as certified foreign entities?
“We’d like Immigration, the Labour Department and IPA to look into them.”