All parties in the Buka Airport Upgrade Re-development Project will now have a clearer understanding of their roles and responsibilities, as clarified in the new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed today.
The MOU was signed between the National Airports Corporation (NAC) and the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG), which will enable these parties to remain committed until the completion of this high impact project.
According to Chief Operating Officer of the National Airports Corporation, Sylvester Kenatsi, the MOU spells out the commitment of each party to proceed with the project and to ensure there are no disturbances.
However, one of the complex issues, is with landowners and others, which will be managed by the Autonomous Bougainville Government.
“For NAC, we are going to provide the expertise and the facilities. We are going to extend the runway, build a new terminal. Fencing is already in progress. All these is delivered under the Civil Aviation Development Investment Program (CADIP).
“The MOU basically states that the ABG needs to support NAC in terms of managing landowner issues,” Kenatsi said.
Mr Kenatsi also mentioned that a co-ordination committee has been established and will use the all-inclusive approach, to execute the consultation process between the Autonomous Bougainville Government and the stakeholders.
“The committee is chaired by the Secretary of the Technical Services Department, Bernard Tzilu. We have also appointed the Buka Town Manager, Edward Kenai, as the coordinator of this project to simply ensure there is constant dialogue and consultation so each party is updated on this very important project,” he said.
Mr Kenatsi says he wants to see this project be completed on time.
He has appealed to landowners to work closely with the co-ordination committee to iron out any issues that may strike in future.
