Papua New Guinea's local business industry be supported, say Rhado Piggery

JOE WASIA | Supported by the Bob Cleland Writing Fellowship

For years many local businesses in Papua New Guinea have never been given a face lift.  However, these local businesses have managed to survive with the most determined and dedicated hearts and minds.

Rhado-before moving to sales section

Rhado Piggery Limited is one good example. The company, formerly known as Hagen Planters Ltd, specializes in breeding-weaning, growing, producing and selling live and slaughtered pigs to the National Capital District and Central Provinces.The farm is located in 15-Mile along Sogeri road in Central Province, less than half an hour’s drive from Port Moresby. It’s located next to one of the PNG’s oldest companies, Hugo Cannery Ltd, a manufacturer of Ox & Palm tinned meat.

For more than 20 years, managing director of the company Robert Rasaka has been committed and dedicated to the business. Mr Rasaka told the National Development Bank (NDB) last year that he started the business with less then 50 pigs in early 1990s. Now the company has thousands of pigs and its one of the leading pig breeders in the country. Every

Belden Namah: The man behind the Engima

BLUNT TALK SHARP ACTION (BTSA)
Sonja Barry Ramoi > BLUNT TALK SHARP ACTION (BTSA)

Deep in the mountains of the village called Paru Paru - the village of late secessionist leader and former first President of Bougainville Joseph Kabui - not far from Panguna Mine, Defence Force Captain and Helicopter Pilot Charlie Andrews was ordered by the Commander of the PNG Defence Force Brigadier General Jerry Singirok to go in and get Captain Belden Norman Namah out. The terrain, in enemy territory under the control of the Bougainville Revolutionary Army, was no place for a chopper to land. Captain Namah – in a daring, innovative feat and display of bravery – was airlifted out of the bush by hanging onto the skid of the chopper. Only a very strong man highly skilled and highly trained to be a Special Forces Unit commando could do that.

Unsuspecting elite citizens in Papua New Guinea lose thousands to global crime

By Online Editor
4:58 pm GMT+12, 13/06/2013, Papua New Guinea

About eight Papua New Guinean elites have fallen victim to international money laundering scams, losing almost K1 million (US$446,000).
Among these leaders is a former Minister and Member of Parliament, a former top cop who was so traumatised he felt sick and died and several former Government Departmental heads who lost money to alleged businessmen and corporations in Nigeria, United Kingdom and the Philippines. A Papua New Guinean who migrated to Australia with her husband 15 years ago but divorced also fell victim to what she called a “love scam” where she lost $20,000 (US$8,900) to someone she met online and who promised to marry her over a five-year period.

These elites (named) either transferred money through MoneyGram or Western Union and have wired money which included about K250,000 (US$111,000) from a female elite who wired this amount in exchange of Pound 13 million for winning a lottery, a former MP and Minister K120,000 (US$53,000) ( for a housing money transfer), K50,000 (US$22,00) to assist a person who claimed was stuck in a war zone and couldn’t take her father’s $US90 million parked in a trust account, K30,000 (US$13,000) and K10,000 (US$4,000 for stock trade in the United Kingdom.

Papua New Guinea’s controversial seabed mining and related projects not needed

By Joe WASIA

Seabed mining, of course, it’s a new term to the ears of many Papua New Guineans. In very simple definition it’s the underwater extraction of minerals resources.

This method is rarely used in the world whereas onshore mineral extractions are vastly used through out the world. Both methods have environmental and health risks which are assessed and analysed before projects are started.   

Now, a new frontier in mining is set to be opened up by the underwater extraction of resources from the seabed off the coast of Papua New Guinea, despite vehement objections from environmentalists and local activists and even some parliamentarians.

Canadian firm Canadian Natalius Minerals has been granted a 20-year licence by the PNG government last year under the Somare regime to commence the Solwara 1 project near East New Britain and New Ireland provinces, which many people refer it as the world's first commercial deep sea mining operation.

Scam on the rise in the 21st Century electronic world

Scam groups are mushrooming everywhere as the global information technology has been increasing in the last few decades. Thousands of people especially from developing countries are victims of this.  

Here is an abstract from my post on Facebook:

Hi OVER NIGHT MILLIONAIRES!!!!!
I probably know some of you are already victims of spam. Be careful of emails and text messages you receive on your mobile phones, computers etc. In this electronic world, spammers are targeting people from developing countries like PNG were you can be a victim. Some of you are already have sleepless nights after receiving emails or text masges saying you have won millions of dollars or you receive a messages saying you could help her (usually an African) to transfer millions of dollars that were parked in a bank in Europe or Africa after her father died in a civil war etc..