Porgera mine closure impacting women, services: President

ABOUT 6,000 women who have been benefiting from the Porgera mine in Enga are now struggling to fend for their families following closure of the mine three years ago.
Porgera District Women’s Association (PDWA) president Serah Erasi highlighted this during a recent interview.
PDWA is an association of 6,000 women,” Erasi said.
“They are from Porgera Paiela, Ewa, Strickland, Mt Kare, Tipinini and Loa.
“All our work has ceased because our contracts are usually from Porgera Joint Venture.
“We’ve had contracts like cleaning, and all that.
“So when the mine ceased operating, all our activities also stopped and our women have struggled since.
“Ipili Investment, which is our company, has stopped operating, when the mine ceased.
“The little that we got was put towards salaries.”
Porgera Women in Business president Elizabeth Iarume raised similar concerns.
“Services in Porgera valley are closed.
“Basic services like health, education, banking services and other public services that we are supposed to be accessing. “Those services are still closed due to law and order issues.
“People are no longer carrying on with the sort of lifestyle that they used to before.
“We have started a new year and the school year will begin shortly.
“Our children need to go back to school.
“Public servants must resume work in Porgera.
“National and provincial governments are talking about the reopening of the mine.
“But are they concerned about the welfare of the people and the situation we are in right now?
“We have people with money traveling to Mt Hagen or Wabag to access banking services and they get held up along the highway.
“Pregnant women are traveling out to seek medical help and they sometimes deliver their babies along the way or even die.
“Our children are turned away when they try to access education services outside Porgera.
“We would like to make an appeal to respective governments to get the services back up and running.
“Public services should return, businesses should reopen.”