By Sasha Pei-Silovo – EM TV News, Port Moresby
Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Tobias Kulang, says that he has plans to work with the National Cultural Commission to develop PNG’s music sector.
Speaking with EMTV, Minister Kulang, in acknowledging the powerful means of connecting people through music, said that collectively the music ecosystem generates rich social, cultural and economic benefits.
He said that a vibrant music economy drives value for PNG in several important ways; including job creation, economic growth, tourism development and artistic growth, and strengthens PNG’s tourism destination brand.
Kulang believes that Papua New Guinea’s music sector has immense potential, and should be supported. He added that regulations were needed to stimulate growth and improve standards, to see the industry thrive and develop to meet world standards.
Music creates income generation opportunities for scores of Papua New Guineans and any approach taken to develop the music industry should be combined with working at the local level to engage with and reach active musicians, to fully understand and address their needs, and to create opportunities that are accessible to them.
This should also relate properly to the wider music context and the local PNG, and the greater global market that PNG musicians aspire to reach.
