The program for the Business Advantage Papua New Guinea Investment Conference has been announced, highlighting business opportunities across PNG’s economy. The conference will be organised by the publisher of businessadvantagepng.com, and will be held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Sydney, Australia, on 7 and 8 September.

The view from the conference venue, the Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney

The conference will promote broad-based economic growth in Papua New Guinea to the international business community, showcasing a wide range of sectors, including: infrastructure, construction, services, agribusiness and mining/petroleum.

Its main focus will be on business and investment opportunities across the economy and around the country.

Full briefing

Over two days, delegates will receive a full briefing on the country’s economic potential, and hear from a range of businesses that are already in PNG and doing great things.

‘They’ll get to meet investors and financiers, and talk to some of the entrepreneurs leading PNG’s next wave of development in a dynamic, live setting,’ says Andrew Wilkins. Publishing Director of conference organiser, Business Advantage International (BAI).

‘For us, it’s also a chance to meet some of the many thousands of business people—in PNG, Australia and across the region— who regularly visit www.businessadvantagepng.com, and for them to meet us.‘

BAI has been actively involved in promoting business in PNG and the Pacific since 2005. Its most recent PNG investment conference was the highly successful 2015 PNG Advantage Investment Summit.

Expertise

The organisers have also been drawing on the expertise of partners such as the IFC (the private sector arm of the World Bank), the Asian Development Bank (the largest single infrastructure investor in PNG), the Papua New Guinea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other PNG industry bodies.

Strategic location

The decision to hold the conference in Sydney is a strategic one for the organisers. Over 600 multinationals run their Asia-Pacific operations out of Sydney and 45 per cent of Australia’s top 500 companies are based there. A special launch event for the conference is being held in Sydney this Thursday.

PNG in a Connected World

One of the major themes of the conference will be how PNG can take advantage of its improved connectivity with the rest of the world. Keynote speaker Mark Pesce— the high profile futurist and entrepreneur, perhaps best known as an expert panelist on ABC TV’s long-running The New Inventors program—will talk on the business opportunities for PNG in a connected world.

Meanwhile, Kumul Telikom Chairman Mahesh Patel will outline the opportunities that are arising from the reorganisation of PNG’s state-owned telcos.

Industry sectors in which PNG has traditional strengths will also be highlighted.

High profile speakers

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PNG’s gas and energy future will high on the agenda, with speakers including Peter Botten, the CEO of PNG’s largest company, Oil Search, and Horizon Oil CEO Brent Emmett.

High profile speakers across financial services, construction, infrastructure, manufacturing and business services include Kina Bank CEO Syd Yates, Air Niugini Chairman Sir Frederick Reiher, S P Brewery Managing Director Stan Joyce and PNG tech entrepreneur Shane Ninai.

In addition to a variety of business case studies, drawn from across PNG’s economy, delegates will be briefed by APEC PNG Coordination Authority CEO Christopher Hawkins on PNG’s plans for hosting the 2018 APEC Leaders’ Meeting.

Pacific Islands Investment Seminar

The conference will provide two events in one, with the final afternoon consisting of a Pacific Islands Investment Seminar, which will focus particularly on the Pacific economies with which PNG has strong business ties, such as Fiji and the Solomon Islands.

The organisers expect to make further additions to the program in coming weeks.

To view the current program, and to register for the conference, visit www.pnginvestmentconference.com.