Maru to EU: Help PNG develop trade policy d
The National, Friday April 4th, 2014
By CELINA WOLLOM
MINISTER for Trade Commerce and Industry Richard Maru has asked the European Union to assist the government to develop the country’s trade policy.
He told a gathering in Port Moresby yesterday that PNG needed a trade policy to be competitive on international markets.
Maru was speaking at the signing of the new financing agreement for the 10th European development fund trade related assistance project phase II to PNG worth about K18million.
His department would be responsible for the implementation of the project over four years in which it will look at promoting effective engagement with the private sector for sustainable development.
He told Ambassador and Head of the European Union (EU) Delegation to PNG Dr Martin Dihm that as the political head of the department, he was eager to have a deeper relationship with the EU.
He appealed to the EU to look beyond the relations it had with the Government in developing key sectors such as fisheries and agriculture look at training of human resource in the area of trade policy development.
Maru said the department needed officers to be trained and well versed in the area of trade policy and hoped that funding would assist in.
“PNG does not want to be an exporter of raw materials but have downstream processing in the country.
“We want to see more EU countries invest in here and we would like to go to EU countries and invest there.”
He announced that plans were underway to set up a trade and investment committee for the government, which would include representatives from the other government agencies and the private sector.
Maru highlighted that PNG was the only country in the region that had signed and ratified the Interim Economic Partnership (IEPA) with the EU.
“The EU has been the major market for PNG tuna and oil palm will utilize this assistance to build our capacities (policies, legislations/laws, procedures and processes, equipment and training) to take advantage of the opportunities that the IEPA provides.”