By Mortimer Yangharry
More than 20,000 people of the Lower Lai constituency in the Wapenamanda District of Enga Province will benefit from the Small to Medium Enterprises (SME) policy currently being rolled out by the Wapenamanda District Development Authority (WDDA).
The PNG NO.1 SME Limited is on the ground visiting villages and providing exclusive financial literacy services nurturing villagers to become businessmen and women and meaningfully participate in the SME sector.
Members of the PNG NO.1 SME Limited accompanied the WDDA Chief Executive Officer Kevin Yati when he was visiting the newly constructed road link that will eventually connect Kompiam and Baiyer in the Western Highlands Province.
The Wapenamanda DDA Chairman and Vice Minister for Works and Highways Miki Kaeok engaged the services of the PNG NO.1 SME Limited to rollout the district’s SME policy over the next four years.
Under the district’s SME rollout, the people will register and open up bank accounts to enable certification with relevant government agencies like the Investment Promotion Authority (IPA) and the Internal Revenue Commission (IRC) to formally enable their SME business accounts to operate.
Exclusive trainings will also be given to the applicants once their SME accounts are opened and operational with the Wapenamanda DDA to provide capital funding to those applicants who are formally registered and have all necessary business requirements in order.
Vice Minister Kaeok has assured his people that the WDDA will financially empower them through the SME policy rollout in the areas of coffee cultivation/production, cattle ranching, livestock breeding, poultry farming, fish farming, fresh fruits and vegetables farming and other areas in agriculture.
“Agriculture is the lifeline of our country. We have good fertile land sitting idle. We must farm the land and make money,” Kaeok encouraged his people.
PNG NO.1 SME Limited Director Dicky Lao assured the people they will be on the ground assisting the general public and told them to come visit the team working on the ground.
The SME policy is currently being rolled out throughout the six constituencies of the district with more than 200 applications already registered.
