Many of Papua New Guinea’s most unruly problems are inseparably tied up with the country’s most promising sources of wealth. Mining, gas, timber, and other extractive industries are the most productive sectors of Papua New Guinea’s otherwise ailing economy. But exploitation of these resources has also led to violence, corruption, and lack of service delivery.
Porgera is the site of the disputed giant gold mine which has been closed for 3 years now. A violent tribal fight between the Aiyala and Nomali tribes has been raging and has put a complete halt to Government services in the district, which has severely affected the communities in this once thriving mining township.
The tribal conflicts at Paiam Station last year in July in the Porgera-Paiea District in Enga Province now have refocused the attention of the mining township over the Government’s failure to restore and provide basic services, such as health, education, law and order, and banking services in the district.
In a recent media conference in Porgera, representatives from women's groups in the area voiced their concerns that despite “significant increases in resourcing over the last two decades, service delivery in Porgera is still failing to reach its people.”
This conclusion was drawn following the recent tribal conflicts and the breakdown of law and order in the district. Women’s groups in the district expressed their grievances and called on their leaders to assess the deteriorating state of the Government’s service delivery in the valley and restore basic services in the area.
Many businesses, especially in Paiam, had closed amid the fighting or had been operating on reduced schedules; there were a lot of commercial disruptions during the fighting as well as the closure of Government services in the district. Security measures and clashes had also triggered localized transport disruptions.
For months, the people have urged and called for the restoration of Government services in Porgera District after essential services that included the Paiam Hospital, Porgera Secondary and Primary Schools, Judicial Services, and the District Administration office had been closed down following the tribal conflict. The government has consistently failed to maintain law and order in the face of these security challenges
Porgera Women in Business President and Aumbi Lodge Owner Elizabeth Iarume stated that restoration of government services in Porgera needs to be a priority for the National and Provincial Government as the daily challenges of accessing government services outside of Porgera has seen people dying on the road while seeking medical services, looting and hold-up of public transport, and now students are expected to miss another year of education as schools remain closed.
"So many people in Porgera have been affected, The communities struggle with economic and social hardship far from public view, because access to these areas is difficult and State presence is limited," Iarume said.
The women have observed that provincial administrators generally failed to perform responsibly; provincial accountability mechanisms were severely weakened, provincial governments lacked resources and oversight of what happens in the district; and legal arrangements had minimal impact on the behaviour of politicians in ways that would improve service delivery.
Youth rep Joy Tero recently spoke on behalf of impacted young girls and women of Porgera on the ongoing challenges faced as government services remain closed in Porgera. Joy highlighted that young girls have been the main victims of kidnapping and rapes during tribal conflict and asked for a Police/PNG Defense Force Barracks to be set up permanently in Porgera.
The women have also made calls for the restart of Porgera Mine in 2023 as the economic impact of the mine closures continues to be a day-to-day struggle for small businesses and the informal sector in Porgera.
A key question addressed by the women was whether the decline in service delivery is “causally related to the country's political precedence on the Porgera Mine.”
Porgera District Women Association President Serah Erasi called on the National Government and Barrick Niugini Limited to make it known on when the Porgera Mine will reopen, as economic struggles of the people of Porgera drag onto 4th year since the closure of the mine.
"Why has the mine not been reopened? We have been struggling to sustain our families since the closure of the mine. When the mine was in operation we benefited from its economic outputs, The Prime Minister must come to Porgera and give us an amswer on when the mine will be reopened," Erasi said.
Porgera is one of Papua New Guinea’s longest running goldmines. Operating for 30 years in the highlands province of Enga, this large mine was expected to produce around 250,000 ounces of gold in 2019. It employs more than 5,000 people and the 5% landowner and provincial equity stake has helped to fast-track the efforts to bring services and education to one of the country’s most remote provinces. In spite of all the wealth it generates, Porgera still suffers from poverty and a lack of basic government services.
