Tax credit funds going towards road: Marape

By DALE LUMA
PRIME Minister James Marape says most of the funds from tax credit schemes (TAC) will go towards roads.
He said this during the launching of the National Road Network Strategy (NRNS 2018-2037) yesterday.
He said funding would go specifically towards building roads that would connect areas where economic activities in different resource sectors were taking place in order to generate revenue for the country.
“The bulk or if not all of the tax credit funds will be geared towards road infrastructure,” he said.
“We have to be part of tax credit partnerships and maintain key major roads and also ask development partners for concessional borrowings.
“The priority of the roads must be based on economic returns and not just social returns or political returns.
“It must be based on economic justification whether the road lead to an agriculture site, fish farm, sustainable logging company, mine, port and other economic zones.”
Marape also asked the Department of Works and Implementation to discuss with key departments such as the Department of Planning and Monitoring, Department of Finance and Treasury to identify priority roads.
“We must rank all our roads by priority so as long as they can grow the economy after it is completed so that it becomes an impetus for continual economic growth,” he said.
“I don’t want us to build a road to nowhere, that does not have any economic impact so I ask the Works Department to sit with the Planning and Finance Department and tell me what the priority roads are.” Marape said he wanted the Trans Highway from Morobe to Kerema to be a priority followed by other highways to link provinces.
Works and Implementation Minister Michael Nali said that intended projects funded by tax credit funds in various industrial sites should be given to the companies operating in those areas.
“For example, if we are going to engage tax credit funds in Enga, give that project to Porgera because they use that road so why not we lock that money in so that we achieve something,” he said.
“From (Mt) Hagen all the way to Kopiago and Komo where LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) operations are happening, you have Oil Search and ExxonMobil operating there. We should lock in tax credit scheme projects so we see something happening with the money and also do the same to other areas such as Lihir and the Oil Palm areas.”