Madang’s tourism trend low: Sir Peter

 By SHIRLEY MAULUDU 

THE trend in the tourism sector in Madang and other provinces seemed to have been generally low last year, businessman Sir Peter Barter says.

Sir Peter who is mostly engaged in the hospitality and tourism sector, believes figures for holiday-makers may have dropped during the year as compared to previous year.

“I don’t have the arrival figures from migration for 2015 but I suspect they would not be much better than 2014 where in the case of Australian arrivals, the increase was put at 11.7 per cent which sounds good – until you remove the number of Australian passengers arriving by cruise ship,” he said.

“The decrease exceeds 50 per cent under the category of holiday.

“In reality, domestic and international tourism (figures) in Madang (and other provinces) are well down. 

“The number of conferences have also decreased along with numbers of public servants and individuals in the private sector. 

“The fly-in and fly-out which could be the foundation of domestic tourism is not working in favour of Papua New Guinea. 

“Hotels generally are not hiring. In fact, many lay-offs are occurring at a time when we should really be finding more jobs.

“I have spoken out about the restriction on Australian tourist visas and while SME (small and medium enterprises) relaxation has occurred, it is very restrictive. 

“In fact, it is discriminatory favouring Rabaul and Alotau, which have been declared tourist hubs at the expense of other provinces.”

The Government has been looking at investing in centres such as Rabaul in East New Britain and Mt Hagen in Western Highlands as tourist destinations.  

According to information from the Tourism Promotion Authority, Papua New Guinea Vision 2050 and the medium term development plan 2011-2015 see tourism rising to become a significant driver of economic growth.

Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority undertakes visitor exit survey after every two years to keep up to date with the wants, needs and behaviours of international visitors. 

The information helps PNGTA  understand the types of holidays.