Landowner firm aims to support local businesses succeed

Business

ONE of the ambitions of Laba Holdings is to create an enabling environment for local businesses to succeed, says, Raho Kevau, chairman of Laba Holdings Limited, the umbrella landowner company for the PNG LNG Plant communities.
“In particular, we want women to take centre stage. Women are often overlooked in Papua New
Guinean society,” he said.
“Still, they have so much potential in the business arena, which is why we are trying to create more opportunities to support them.”
To demonstrate this commitment, Laba Holdings recently contracted Diari Tailoring, a local women’s sewing business in Boera, to produce uniforms for their air travel staff.
Laba will support the initiative by assisting with materials supply chain needed for manufacture, as well as extending a concessional commercial payment to enable the immediate acquisition of the materials.
Diari Tailoring will initially operate out of the Boera Women’s Resource Centre, built with funding support from ExxonMobil PNG (EMPNG) in 2018 to support capacity building and small-to-medium enterprise initiatives for women in the PNG LNG Plant villages. Since its opening, 40 women have participated in sewing training and have developed the necessary skills for garment construction.
“Having this opportunity is like a dream come true,” Doreka Dai, founder of Diari Tailoring and part of the Advancing PNG: Women Leaders Network, said.
“The inspiration for this project came from my time as a participant in the EMPNG supported Global Women in Management programme.
“By learning from the business experiences and stories of other women, I realised there were many opportunities for women.”