Four new mines to come on stream within 10 years, Corruption Commission next year and other local and regional stories.

Four large mining operations are soon to come on stream in the next 10 years, according to the Mineral Resources Authority‘s Acting Managing Director Philip Samar. They are the Wafi-Golpu gold and copper project—which he says ‘could be another Ok Tedi or Panguna-sized operation with an expected mine life of 20 plus years’—Mt Kare, Yandera and Frieda River.

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Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has told Papua New Guinea’s Parliament that constitutional changes would be made to establish the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). The body is likely to be in place by the middle of 2014. It is expected to take over the functions of the Task Force Sweep and the police fraud squad.

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Mining Minister Byron Chan says the Solwara 1 deep sea bed project would be delayed because of ‘current legal matters that needed to be addressed’. He said the government, through the Treasury and other state departments, was working on how to finance the 30% equity an independent binding arbitration ruled it had to pay to Solwara 1 operator, Nautilus Minerals.

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The Autonomous Bougainville Government is about to gazette new laws establishing controls on foreign investment. The Inward Investment Bill, passed last week, aims to ensure that any foreign investment is responsible and meets Bougainville’s cultural, economic and social needs.

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PM O’Neill has threatened to scrap the visa on arrival arrangements it has with Australia, unless it is reciprocated. O’Neill has told parliament said he is disappointed with how long it takes for PNG nationals  to get an Australian visa.

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The PNG Government has announced certified accountant Paul Yangen, former Acting Managing Director of Namabawan Super, as interim Managing Director of Papua New Guinea Sustainable Development Program (PNGSDP).

The announcement has been rejected by PNGSDP Chairman Sir Mekere Morauta: ‘PNGSDP is a Singapore not-for-profit company … NEC’s actions are entirely inconsistent with the company’s constitutional documents and are unlawful … All of these actions are of no legal effect whatsoever, and PNGSDP does not accept any of them,’ he said in a statement.

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The Australian High Commission has released figures showing a rise in the number of PNG citizens employed at the asylum-seeker centre on Manus Island. As of 1 November, 616 PNG citizens were employed, up from 424 a month ago. Five hundred of these citizens are from Manus, up from 287 in October. It also reports the average worth of business for Manus companies was K196,600 per week, an increase of 15.6 per cent on October.

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Around 30 parties in Papua New Guinea could be de-registered for failing to submit election expenses from last year’s election. The Registrar of Political Parties, Dr Alphonse Gelu, reports he has already referred nine MPs to the Ombudsman Commission for failing to submit their financial returns.

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The wife of a prominent businessman in Wewak, East Sepik Province is being praised as a role model for women wanting to get into business. A year ago, Mirriam Isifu obtained a loan of about K300,000 from the National Development Bank to buy a three-vehicle fleet to start ‘Kemiris Car Rentals’. Business has been booming, and she’s now looking to expand.

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Fiji’s military government has brought down its Budget, which has a deficit of 1.9% of GDP. But leaving out one-off asset sales worth F$ 478million, the deficit soars to 7.5% of GDP. Economic analysts say the asset sales is ‘the largest in Fiji’s history’ and includes the partial privatisation of Fiji Electricity Authority, divestment of shares in Airports Fiji Limited & Fiji Ports Corporation Limited, sale of foreign mission properties and privatisation of the government printery.

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Tuna caught by members of the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA) has gone on sale in a supermarket chain in Austria, the first EU country to sell PNA tuna under its own Pacifica label. The tuna is skipjack tuna caught from wild schools.

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The South Pacific Tourism Organisation is planning to set up a representative office in China to boost tourism in countries like Fiji, Samoa and Tonga. Seven island nations have received ‘Approved Destination Status’ from the Chinese government. In 2012, 70,000 Chinese tourists visited the South Pacific.

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