Japan helps Papua New Guinea with a generous loan, the Internal Revenue Commission launches its annual work plan and Prime Minister Marape visits Jiwaka Province.

Vision. Credit: IRC

Financial services

Vari Lahui, Chief Executive Officer at Nasfund Contributors Savings and Loan Society (NCSL), says NCSL is on track to become ‘the first electronic bank in PNG’. He said that ‘a report has been completed’ and that there will be a strategy workshop to discuss the report and when to become an electronic bank.

Taxation

‘Robust, modern and efficient’ are the expectations that Commissioner General of the Internal Revenue Commission (IRC), Sam Koim, has for the tax administration by 2025. He said this during the launch of the IRC Annual Work Plan last week. Koim mentioned that uncollected tax debts and a high rate of non-compliance are among the problems that the IRC faces today.

‘The starting point recognises that the self-assessment tax regime that PNG has adopted works well in societies that are generally honest and compliant. PNG’s societal preconditions present unique compliance challenges hence a raft of interventions have to be introduced to secure voluntary compliance,’ he said. (IRC)

National

Japan has joined the list of countries that are helping PNG to sort its finances. The Asian country has provided PNG with a K1 billion concessional loan to help the government repay its debts, finance the 2021 National Budget, and stabilise the economy. The repayment period is 15 years and the interest rate is 0.01 per cent, according The National.

‘This K1 billion is the largest ever since the start of Japan’s official development assistance to PNG,’ said the Japanese Ambassador Kuniyuki Nakahara. ‘PNG can enjoy a grace period of four years and can begin to pay back the debt after its economy recovers.’ (The National)

***

Prime Minister Marape during the launch of the upgrade to the Tombil Vocational Centre in Jiwaka Province. Credit: Office of the Prime Minister and NEC via Facebook

When launching the K200 million Jiwaka provincial headquarters at Kurumul, Prime Minister James Marape announced the government’s decision to upgrade the Tombil Vocational Centre into a ‘fully-fledged’ Technical Vocational Education Training (TVET) college.

Marape also urged the Jiwaka Provincial Government to revive the tea and coffee plantations at the Waghi Valley and support other agricultural activities to create employment opportunities.

‘I want the entire Wahgi Valley, including the Jiwaka Province, to be an agricultural hub or food-processing region in the upper Highlands and the entire country,’ he said.