The New Zealand government says it hopes an electrification aid project that was halted in Papua New Guinea can still be completed if security improves.

Work on the Enga Electrification Project in PNG’s Enga province has stopped due to ongoing violence around the project area in Tsak Valley.

New Zealand spent NZ$6.7 million over the last six years on the project which aimed to connect at least 4000 households to electricity.

It was part of combined efforts with the US, Australia and Japan to help 70 percent of PNG homes get connected by 2030, as agreed to in 208 when PNG hosted the APEC Leaders Summit.

However, contractors had to be withdrawn from the area after a surge in tribal fighting in August last year, according to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

“Ending New Zealand’s involvement is a disappointing outcome, particularly given New Zealand’s longstanding and extensive efforts to deliver energy infrastructure in Enga Province,” the spokesperson said.

“New Zealand is working on a transition plan with partners in Papua New Guinea. It is hoped this will allow for the successful completion of the project if security improves.”

Northern lines installed
The ministry said 13.5 KM of distribution lines in the North of the project area were largely installed but were yet to be commissioned or connected to houses.

It said 12km of distribution lines in the south of the project area remained at various stages of construction.

Meanwhile, PNG’s Foreign Minster Justin Tkatchenko told local media that New Zealand would hand over equipment from the project to PNG Power Limited, a state-owned entity.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

A number of small contractors in Papua New Guinea are still waiting for positive feedback for money owed to them by government agencies after 12 years.

A 2015 Post-Courier front page picture showed a man, David Goli, who chained himself at the then headquarters of the Education Department at Fincorp Haus to protest over not being paid for the programme work.

He is still waiting today.

The contractors, who are mostly small businessmen and women who were engaged by the Education Department, NCD Education and the Library and Archives, to carry out work under a pilot project worth K500 million (about NZ$224 million).

The contractors were engaged under the RESI (rehabilitation of education sector infrastructure) programme, NCD Education RESI and the Library and Archives development programme.

They provided the service and also used their own funds to carry out the work with the promise of being paid but to date they are still waiting.

These RESI programme, NCD Education RESI and the Library and Archives development programme, according to the current representatives of the contractors, was during the term of the government of the late Sir Michael Somare and Sir Puka Temu in 2007.

Balance awaited
Three separate payments were made in 2009, 2011 and 2013, but up until now, some 12 years later, they are still waiting for the balance of their payment.

The leaders of the group, chairman Joe Kelta Kombie, deputy chairman Paulus Wembri and James Pijape came in person to the Post-Courier office at Konedobu expressing their concern on the delayed payment.

They said the issue of this payment had gone through various stages, including the Education Department’s refusal to pay because of bogus claims.

That resulted in a number of audits to determine genuine contractors which were done by three separate agencies but yet the payments were not forthcoming despite numerous representations to the department.

They also claimed that current Prime Minister James Marape was fully aware of this programme and the plight of the contractors because at that time he was Education Minister before being moved to another ministry.

“The Prime Minister knew our problem at that time. He was the one who took our matter to NEC [National Executive Council] where K96 million [NZ$43 million] was made available in 2015, but the department did not pay,” the three representatives said.

“Recently there was an NEC decision made in November 2022 to allocate some monies for this payments, but as contractors and people owed, we don’t know how much NEC has approved.

Confidential details
“The submission made to NEC for this outstanding payment has been kept confidential for reasons known only to the department. We don’t know the list of contractors, the amount that is going to be available and we are suspicious that we may not be paid at all again.”

They are now calling on the Prime Minister, Education Minister and the Secretary to come out and tell them if they will ever be paid.

“We totally agree and support this governments policy on SMEs.

We were once on that path but after spending on these three programmes and hoping to be paid, we are now left with nothing. Please listen to our plight and pay us what is owed to us,” the men said.

Todagia Kelola is a PNG Post-Courier reporter. Republished with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

A one metre-deep hole in the ground is all there is to show of an almost K2.7 million state contract project in Papua New Guinea’s Northern Province, reports PNG Post-Courier.

The project was for the design, pre-fabrication and construction of a community health post building with support facilities for Kiorata in Sohe district, and valued at K2,682,417 (about NZ$1.06 million).

“The contractor did absolutely nothing except dig a hole in the ground,” said Justice Minister Bryan Kramer.

This project is among others that have been investigated by the State Audit and Recovery Taskforce (SART) initiated by the Department of Justice and Attorney-General working with nine other State agencies.

“The contractors involved in these failed projects have been taken to the National Court for breach of contract,” Kramer said.

“These court proceedings are now before the National Court for orders to be made.

“As with all the court proceedings filed by the taskforce, they will be asking for the projects to be completed at the contractors’ own cost or funds paid for the project to be refunded with interest and costs of proceedings.”

Suspect projects
The SART-conducted site inspections last year in some cases that were suspected of being failed projects despite payments being made, and had been referred to them by government departments.

“The taskforce members travelled to the project sites, some of which are located in the most remote parts of the country, and discovered that almost all the projects were not completed,” Kramer said.

He said many of these projects involved the construction of school buildings and health centres.

“Most of the projects were, apart from some land clearing, not constructed at all.

“Some were 10 to 80 percent finished, and others were completed but with poor design and materials used, so water was coming into the building during the rainy season, or termites were already eating away the timber used,” Kramer said.

“The taskforce compiled detailed reports with photographs, which were then used to file court proceedings against the defaulting contractors for breach of contract.”

This year the taskforce has filed several court proceedings against contractors from site inspections in 2020 for failed projects which cost the state more than K7 million (about NZ$2.8 million).

Billons of kina are lost to undelivered state contracts every year and the SART initiative uses the claims by and against the State Act 1996 to make claims against contractors for breach of contract.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz