Foreign businesses increase due to locals selling to investors

The National Business

PAPUA New Guinea’s micro-small to medium enterprises (MSMEs) owners are selling their small businesses to foreign investors, because they want to collect rentals, says PNG Immigration and Citizenship Authority (PNGICA) chief migration officer Solomon Kantha.
“They do not want to run wholesale and retail businesses, they want to sit down and collect rent,” he said during the Business Regulators Summit in Port Moresby last week.
“And this is where, we see a proliferation of foreign businesses into those sectors.”
Concerns were raised about MSMEs facing unfair competition from an influx of foreigners dominating certain business sectors,
especially wholesale and retail sectors.
“We cannot go and tell them that this is reserved for Papua New Guineans,” he said.
Kantha said while the PNGICA did not do spot checks, there was a need for continuous collaboration between relevant agencies like the Labour and Industrial Relations department, health inspectors and Investment Promotion Authority.
“We cannot do anything unless there is a broader discussion with other agencies on how we can empower the local businesses.”

3 comments

  • Those who are locals renting or selling their small to medium business to foreigners punish them or send them (local) to prison.

  • The reporter should have asked PNGICA, ‘Why don’t you do spot checks?’ instead of waffling about broader discussions with other agencies….
    It shouldn’t merely be a lazy copying of a press release..

  • There must be some strict regulation protecting the rights of local MSME owners who particularly involve in wholesale and retail businesses. We can not allow foreigners to take advantage of opportunities that were capable by our local people. If those businesses that we can, we must do it, we must encourage more of our people to take part and involve in such sectors.

    We must not entertain laziness and those who sell their small businesses to foreigners for the shake of renting must be condemn. We cannot remain idle seeing foreigners coming in and reaping all our opportunities that we can.

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