Loggers chip in to connect PNG

COVER STORY

Officials travel to the end of Magi Highway in Central’s Abau district to see road works to link Port Moresby to Alotau in Milne Bay as part of the Government’s ambitious Connect PNG programme

By CLIFFORD FAIPARIK
THE forestry industry is driving the Marape-Rosso Government’s ambitious Connect PNG Programme to build roads in the missing link areas to serve people in remote areas.
These new roads will unlock remote areas and open huge potential agricultural areas to grow the national economy.
One of the missing link areas is between the Central and Milne Bay where there are no roads. And so the people in the Abau district in Central and Alotau district in Milne Bay are cut off from receiving services in Port Moresby and Alotau town.
But the suffering of being isolated and feeling left out will soon be a thing of the past as the forestry industry is contributing to the Connect PNG Programme to connect Milne Bay and Central through logging projects in Cloudy Bay and Amazon Bay areas. These areas in the Abau district share borders with Alotau electorate over in Milne Bay.
Active Forest Limited logging company is currently building roads in this area while harvesting logs. Later these roads will be realigned under the Connect PNG roadmap to be further upgraded to become all-weather roads required under the standards of Department of Works and Highways.
Last week a joint government team comprising representatives from the Department of Prime Minister and National Executive Council and National Forest Authority (NFA) inspected the progress of a road construction that will link Central and Milne Bay.

Site inspection
The inspection came about after Abau MP Sir Puka Temu raised concerns in Parliament last week over whether the road the Gopvernment was working in partnership with logging companies to construct the road.
In response the team led by Forests Minister Salio Waipo and NFA Managing Director John Mossoro went to Lipa River in Abau District on Tuesday. This is where the Magi Highway ends, about 300km from Port Moresby.
Sir Puka also accompanied them and discovered that another 70km of road was extended from Babugina village to Lipa River. Babugina village in the Cloudy Bay Local Level Government is where the original Magi Highway ends.
The 70km extension was jointly built by Action Forest Limited logging company and a construction company engaged by the Department of National Works and Highways.
During the inspection Sir Puka reminded the logging company and construction company to work together. Sir Puka also urged both companies to working together with the landowners.
“We are here to make sure that all parties participate in trying to map this Connect PNG Programme between Abau District and Milne Bay Province.
“And what we are saying is there are timber projects that are operating in this area. So our job as Minister for Forests and Minister for Works and Highways, Prime Minister Department and I as the Abau MP and landowners are to work on one plan only.
“In virgin forests we want the value of the trees too, so the company has to go first to check the value so it will be part of the royalties paid, rather than you go in cut trees randomly and spoil the trees and there is no value for it.
“Those are the issues the landowners work on so we want to work together. And on the ground in here.I got my (council) ward members here,” Sir Puka told the company representatives.
“For me I want an approved route for the Connect PNG direction in this difficult area where there are water ways spread all over the area and engineering is very difficult.
“But we don’t want to say we will build here, then time come e are tired of maintaining it like wash away culverts like in other Provinces, like no proper GPS.

Many lessons learnt
“So we have learnt many lessons and so we can do a good job in this part of PNG. So talk with the land owners to identify special areas like graves and other things,” Sir Puka said.
Forest Minister Salio Waipo is happy that Active Forest Ltd is constructing this road under the National Government’s Connect PNG programme.
Waipo said, “We have the Connect PNG programme and we will work closely with the Department of Works and Highways. I want to thank Active Forest LtdGeneral Manager David Ling and his team for a job well done so far.
“This is what the Government wants do in working with all our partners through the private-public partnership so that we can achieve whatever goals that our government has for our people.
“Basically it’s for our people. Whatever we do must be for our people. Beside, we as the minister and local MPrepresent our people.
“So whatever decision that we make must reflect and benefit our people. This a way forward to work with all our investors in the country in all sectors like agriculture, forestry and others so we can all hold hands together with our government so that we can achieve the best for our people”.
NFA Managing Director John Mossoro said, “we will see how best to help the companies to connect PNG. If they want to bring in materials to construct the bridge, we will see how we can help them.
“We will look out some sort of incentives to assist the two companies, like if they want to use steel to build bridges, we can liaise with PNG Customs to exempt them from paying taxes. So this sort of arrangement we can do,” Mossoro said.
“We can do such permanent arrangements also with logging companies to build schools and health centers.
“And I want to thank the company for working on the road. It was in bad state before but is now in a good state.
“I also commend them for providing services to the people at their own cost and that’s one thing that we must appreciate.
“The Government is there. And under the Connect PNG programme we must consider such companies as service providers.
“Not only in the Cloudy Bay but all around the country. These companies has good track records in their other logging operations also in West Sepik.
“We must support these types of companies in going forward,” Mossoro said.