The National Government has entered into an important partnership with the Government of China and China Railway Company as part of the Highlands Economic Corridor Development Programme.
A sequence of signing ceremonies was held this morning with two Memorandum of Agreement and a Memorandum of Understanding.
Projects include the High Priority Economic Road Project and Integrated Agricultural Industrial Parks in the Highlands.
Following the recent APEC Summit in Vietnam, the Government of PNG is now adapting itself to the Chinese President, Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative.
This is to bring economic benefit and service delivery in the country between the governments of PNG and China.
Prime Minister Peter O’Neill said China is one of our strongest development partners, and this investment is an example of the huge confidence that China and Chinese companies have in Papua New Guinea.
“These projects are taking place as part of the ‘One Belt One Road’ initiative that is creating more efficient trade corridors between the Asia-Pacific and Western Asia.
“As this initiative grows we are seeing infrastructure improvements across many developing countries.
“At the eastern end of the initiative, PNG is deriving benefits that will strengthen capacity to trade across borders” said PM O’Neill.
The first signing ceremony was a Memorandum of Agreement for the PNG-China Integrated Agricultural Industrial Park that will be based in the Eastern Highlands and Western Highlands Provinces.
This project comes at a cost of 330 million US Dollars.
This was signed by both the Eastern Highlands and Western Highlands Provincial Governments, Chinese dignitaries including Chinese Ambassador Xue Bing and China Railway President, Zhang Zongyan.
The agreement, is for the provincial governments to allow the Chinese government to utilise state land to build the agricultural parks for livestock and crops processing.
The project in Eastern Highlands Province will utilise 150 hectares of land and 170 hectares will be used in Western Highlands Province.
While a Memorandum of Understanding was signed for the High Priority Economic Road Projects that will bring important missing road links around the country and upgrade of port infrastructures.
One of these roads, includes the Baiyer to Madang Road.
Another significant project for the Eastern Highlands Province is the upgrade of the town’s water supply, this too, was signed under another Memorandum of Agreement.
With the signing of the projects, Chinese Ambassador to PNG, Xue Bing, says these projects of high priority need implementation as they will bring many benefits.
Projects under the MOA’s and MOU will be carried out by the China Railway Group under their subsidiary company, Covec PNG.
