WNB signs deal to boost farming

Small and Medium Enterprises Corporation (Smec) has signed an agreement with the West New Britain provincial administration to allow the administration to establish an SME business incubation facility in the province.
The agreement allows West New Britain and Smec to jointly combine resources in finance, expertise and equipment to establish a model SME incubation facility.
Lack of access to business infrastructure by SMEs in Papua New Guinea is one of the seven key constraints identified in the SME policy.
The establishment of the SME incubation facility in Kimbe through this agreement will try to address this shortfall.
The incubation facility will focus on the agricultural sector, meaning that SMEs that operate in the facility will utilise spinoffs from oil palm investment companies in the province to produce exportable products such as beef and oil.
Plans are for the facility to have office space where Smec and other Government agencies can operate from and help SMEs through mentoring, training and certification.
Another main component of the facility is the establishment of trade-testing facilitiesto help SMEs get certification for export purposes.
Smec managing director Steven Maken congratulated the West New Britain administration for the partnership.
“The SME Corporation has always embarked on ensuring that the SME policy and master plan is realised in the provinces,” he said.
“We also want to ensure that SMEs are encouraged, promoted and enabled by providing facilities that encourage and promote transition of more SMEs into the formal and export sector.”
A statement said that while Smec “is the lead implementing agency of the Government for the SME policy, it cannot work alone and needs such key players as the provincial administrations to partner with it to roll out such initiatives and programsme.
“Due to funding constraints, Smec has been struggling to implement the SME policy 2016 and SME master plan 2016-2030 since its launching in 2016. This is the first time after two-and-a-half years Smec is going to formally implement the SME policy through this agreement with West New Britain administration.
“It is thankful to the Government and acknowledges the strong advocacy and firm and resolute leadership of the Minister for National Planning and Monitoring Richard Maru and Minister for Commerce and Industry Wera Mori for appropriating K30 million in the 2018 national Budget to implement this project.”
However, due to the Government’s Apec commitments, only K5 million of that K30 million was released.
The remaining K25 million is for three more SME incubation centres in the remaining three regions.