Agriculture & Fisheries
From The Report: Papua New Guinea 2020
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Agriculture is a central pillar of Papua New Guinea’s economy. In 2019 it made up 25% of GDP and contributed to the livelihood of 85% of the population. PNG’s commitment to place agriculture at centre stage and promote the socio-economic development of smallholder farmers bodes well for the future. Currently, the sector remains dependent on export revenues from key crops such as palm oil, cocoa and coffee, as well as fisheries, which makes it vulnerable to changes in commodity prices. The goal of reaching self-sufficiency in food production goes hand-in-hand with the need to develop self-reliant food systems and address the concerns posed by climate change. Although the global spread of Covid-19 has highlighted long-standing transport and logistical challenges, political determination and sustained support from development partners could potentially result in an era of rapid development for the sector. This chapter contains an interview with Alan Bird, Governor, East Sepik Province.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Strong foundation: Recent reforms and a shift towards self-sufficiency support the sector’s resilience in response to changing global conditions
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Agriculture is a central pillar of Papua New Guinea’s economy. In 2019 it made up 25% of GDP and contributed to the livelihoods of 85% of the population. The country’s key crops include cocoa, coffee, copra, palm oil, rubber and tea, most of which are exported and form an important source of foreign exchange (forex) revenues. Since Prime Minister James Marape was elected in May 2019, he has stressed the importance of developing agriculture as part of an inclusive growth agenda, which…

Analysis

Local focus: The importance of domestically grown produce is rising amid potential disruptions to supply chains
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Towards the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, many people chose to stockpile groceries, raising questions about food security in the event of prolonged disruption to supply chains. As of June 2020 restrictions included suspension of domestic and incoming international flights; a ban on movement between provinces except for approved cargo, medical supplies and security forces; and home quarantine for everyone other than essential workers. The government’s swift actions were calculated…

Overview

Fertile land: Allan Bird, Governor, East Sepik Province, on the effects of the pandemic and leveraging technology to create opportunities
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Interview:Allan Bird In what ways are provincial governors working to safeguard the economy in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly regarding agriculture? ALLAN BIRD: Limited central planning and coordination from the federal government essentially passed on much of the responsibility for managing the Covid-19 pandemic to provincial governors. These officials had to look at the quickly unfolding situation and make decisions – a challenging task, but leadership was crucial to mitigate…