Rural PNG in focus: Maru

NATIONAL Planning Minister Richard Maru says the 2019 deficit budget of K16.1 billion is rural-focused and is a people’s budget framed to serve the “little” people in the rural areas.
Maru said to unlock the economic potential in the rural areas, the Government for the first time had allocated funding for the construction of five highways while the Highlands Highway would undergo massive rehabilitation work.
Responding to Opposition’s Budget reply, Maru gave prominence to small and medium enterprises and allocated K100 million through a credit financing programme with the National Development Bank.
He said in line with the Government priorities and focused on rural people, the Government reserved K100 million for joint venture projects with investors.
He said, for example, the K100 million equity with Agro Industries at 14-Mile in Central Diary projects was a success as the price of fresh milk had dropped by about half from, K12 a litres to K5. He said these investments would fetch about K11 million in revenue (corporate tax) while more than 200 new jobs had been created.
While rebutting the Opposition’s reply that the 2019 Budget failed to include the local level government elections and the voter identification registration progress, Maru said K50 million had been allocated for the electronic voter and counting project while funding had also been made to conduct the 2019 LLG elections and the Bougainville referendum.
He said another K100 million allocated for the district hospitals throughout the country.
He said for the first time the Government had allocated K100 million to bring back the Plants and Transport Branches to give access to the people in the rural areas while another K10 million was allocated for rural airstrips.
Maru said another K10 million was for district markets and other projects.