Vanuatu and PNG strengthening bilateral relations

Papua New Guinea’s (PNG)Prime Minister, Peter O’Neil, has pledged his country will provide bilateral assistance to Vanuatu valued at 10 million kina (Vt400 million), according to Vanuatu’s Prime Minister, Joe Natuman.

Speaking at a press conference at the Prime Minister’s Office Tuesday, Natuman said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be working on some agreements with PNG on the spending of the funds. And O’Neil has agreed to an invitation from the Vanuatu Government to visit Port Vila before the end of the year during which he will sign the agreements.

After attending the Special MSG Leaders’ Summit in Port Moresby, PNG, last week, the Vanuatu Prime Minister said he then met with the PNG Prime Minister during which the two leaders discussed bilateral relations between their two countries.

Natuman said their meeting covered a wide range of areas including finance, trade, and investment, education, police training, aviation, and labor mobility between MSG countries. He said that during the meeting Prime Minister O’Neil gave the undertaking for his country to assist Vanuatu in many of the areas discussed. One of them is that PNG will fund 100 scholarships for Vanuatu students starting next year.

“PNG has a number of universities and the PNG Prime Minister said PNG will fund 100 scholarships for Vanuatu students to study in PNG universities starting next year with the scholarship to cover tuition and cost of living allowance,” Natuman said.

He said Vanuatu’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been instructed to complete an agreement to cover this area of the bilateral cooperation.

The Prime Minister added that the scholarship will be available equally to French-medium school students who can meet the marks in English required.

Natuman said under the two leaders also discussed the Vanuatu Police Force — particularly the Vanuatu Mobile Force, to renew contacts, especially for training purposes.

On investment, the two leaders agreed for PNG’s Bank South Pacific, which has branches in Solomon Islands, Fiji and many Polynesian countries to look at collaborating with the National Bank of Vanuatu for some form of presence in Vanuatu. In addition, the Vanuatu Prime Minister said he asked that PNG’s biggest builder of hotels – Lomana Group, look at coming to Vanuatu to build hotels.

Lomana Group builds hotels using PNG Provident Fund finance and one of their recent accomplishments is the total renovation and restoration of one of Fiji’s icon resort, the Grand Hotel, opposite Albert Park in Suva.

“We also discussed direct flights between PNG and Vanuatu and I am glad to say that Air Niu Gini’s Chief Executive Officer will be visiting Vanuatu to discuss the idea with Vanuatu Government and Air Vanuatu authorities,” Natuman continued.

The PNG and Vanuatu Prime Ministers also discussed improving Vanuatu’s beef and coffee production, PNG’s intention to upgrade its consulate in Vanuatu to full High Commission status and Vanuatu to open a consulate in PNG to cater for anticipated increase in student intake. In return PNG wants to learn about developing its tourism industry from Vanuatu.

Labor mobility between MSG countries, especially to PNG to work in the country’s rich mineral sector including the liquefied gas business was also a subjected on the table.

Vanuatu and PNG have historical bilateral relations that stretch back to links through education through students who have studied in PNG and PNG’s unforgettable assistance at the birth of the new nation of Vanuatu in 1980 when it assisted with forces sent to quell secessionist uprisings in some of our islands.