‘Investor confidence affected’

Business

INSTITUTE of National Affairs (INA) executive director Paul Barker says Papua New Guinea is in desperate need of new and additional investments to stimulate the economy.
Responding the recent election-related violence in Port Moresby, Barker said the international community was watching and it had wider ramifications.
“The tragic immediate consequences of these violent actions, in terms of deaths and injuries, the violence and terrorising the entire population in the nation’s capital clearly has wider ramifications,” he told The National.
“It severely undermines investor confidence, especially in certain sectors, whether by PNG or international investors.
“PNG desperately needs new and additional investment to stimulate the economy, create new jobs and in turn greater revenue.”
Barker said new investment and job creation had been limited in the past 10 years. “Some of the biggest creators of employment are in the tourism and hospitality sector,” he said.
“But, as with retail and other service industries, they are especially sensitive to disruptions (to business operations) and law and order problems.”
Barker said PNG was watching in dismay, “and so is the wider world, including through its international monitors, who were already shocked by the extensive failure of these elections to enable free and fair voting by a substantial portion of eligible voters”.
“PNG can and must do much better than this for both the present and future, and the future of a credible democracy.”
Many business houses which were closed on Monday reopened yesterday.
The PNG Chamber of Commerce and Industry condemned “in the strongest possible terms the violence that has broken out in NCD and holding innocent residents and business houses to ransom”, according to president Ian Tarutia.
“The international community are observing happenings with keen interest,” he said.
“What is happening at the moment is not the type of image and messaging we want to portray of our country as a safe and conductive environment for investment.
“We must stop this madness immediately.”