Provinces miss out on millions

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Monday October 14th, 2013

 MARITIME provinces are missing out on millions of kina from their tuna resources which are collected by the National Fisheries Authority, East New Britain provincial administrator Aquila Tubal says.

He gave this as one example of how central government agencies were reaping the monetary benefits of resources from provinces, and leaving just the crumbs for them to collect.

Tubal said this was one area the review into the Organic Law on Provincial Governments and Local Level Governments needed changing. 

Tubal cited the cases of mining and forestry resources, which were owned by provinces but they did not benefit from.

“Tuna resources are probably worth a billion (kina) at the national level but they’re not going down to the provinces,” he told fellow provincial administrators and other stakeholders last Thursday.

“A lot of the resources are owned by people in the provinces but controlled by central agencies, which is unnecessary.

“I’ve seen it in East New Britain, because we’ve been trying to get a fishing licence for the people using small boats, not big-purse seiners.

“Can the people participate in economic development with small boats?

“We would like to have access but were prevented by the national agency.

“This is creating frustration.”