A new report outlines ways to improve Papua New Guinea’s internet services, PNG Power to ask for profits to be reinvested in equipment, and PM calls for more public–private partnerships in tourism. Your weekly digest of the latest business news.

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Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has called for more public–private partnerships (PPPs) in the tourism sector to establish it as one of the nation’s major economic sectors of the future. He said while Australia and NZ were ‘good markets’, PNG needs to look to Asia for tourism growth. ‘We must also expand our domestic tourism market so that more Papua New Guineans can see more of our country,’ he said.

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Madang Resort Hotel. Credit: Trip Advisor

A new 20-room wing has been opened at the Madang Resort Hotel, according to the Post Courier. The K4.5 million project replaces 12 of the original hotel rooms. The Chairman of Melanesian Tourist Services, Sir Peter Barter, reportedly said a further eight rooms will be built as well as a 50-passenger mini cruise ship that will replace the Melanesian Discoverer.

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The Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) has bought K500,000 worth of shares in the Bougainville Import and Export General Corporation (BIEG), a joint venture between the ABG and a Chinese corporation which is involved in agriculture and manufacturing projects.

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Oil Search has bought the 30 per cent of Aligned Energy Limited’s interest in the Markham Valley Biomass Project in Morobe Province. To be completed in July 2017, the project will use wood chips from new plantation trees grown and sustainably harvested in the Markham Valley, to provide low cost, reliable baseload biomass power for the Lae region.

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Small business owners are concerned about the ‘drastic’ drop in the value of the kina in recent months, which is hiking up the cost of importing goods, reports The National. The owner of Skipy Fashion and Interior Design, Sharon Taso, reportedly said she had stopped ordering gold-plated jewellery from overseas because it is now so expensive.

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The largest potato farm in PNG has been launched in remote Yapai in the mountains of Enga Province, according to the Post Courier. The K2.5 million project was established by local entrepreneur and economist Sam Talepakali with financial support from the National Development Bank, and financial and technical help from the Fresh Produce Development Agency.

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The Department of Treasury has called for applications to fill positions on the board of the Sovereign Wealth Fund. The board will consist of the chairman, five board members and the Secretary for the Department of Treasury.

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Air Niugini is encouraging passengers for both its domestic and international flights to make use of the airline’s online check-in system in order to avoid long queues at the check-in counters at the airport.

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And finally, two American Samoa businessmen have filed separate complaints with the US Transportation Department over Hawaiian Airlines‘ new policy, according to Radio NZ. The two men reportedly filed the complaints after they had to be weighed before joining their flights from Honolulu. The airline allegedly cited a rise in average passenger weight and a need to distribute the load evenly around the aircraft on that route. American Samoa is rated as one of the most obese countries in the world, with one in three Samoans suffering from type 2 diabetes as a result of their diet.