Island backs small business

By GABRIEL FITO
THE Wewak Island local level government is developing the financial capability of its people by promoting small and medium enterprise activities.
It has allocated K210,000 for the 21 wards to promote the SME activities.
LLG president Pius Bugatar and the finance executive committee members met at Kairiru Island and resolved that the economic sector be given prominence to improve the people’s standard of living.
“There is no other means to grow the economy apart from the fish industry. We do not have land. We are very poor.
“Therefore as a responsible government, we should assist our people to venture into SME activities so that they generate enough money to meet their financial obligations.
“Ward members will be directly responsible for these funds and will help individuals and groups, especially women, to start small activities like buy and sell or to buy fishing gear,” Bugatar said.
He said the money would be made available through the ward members because ordinary villagers could not get loans from the National Development Bank or other financial institutions.
Under government guidelines, only K50,000 from the K500,000 LLG services improvement programme funding can be used for the economic sector. “But the door is open to either increase or decrease appropriation from the other sectors, depending on situations.
“We will therefore get some money from other sectors to meet the K210,000.
“I will write to the Finance Minister to give his blessing to this.”