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This is actually a fourth set of figures consistent with our theme that the Plan is projecting declining living standards. If 2022 GDP is K107.8 billion and 2027 GDP is K164 billion, then annual average growth is, as you say, 9% (8.8% to be precise). The Plan targets annual average population growth of 4.8% (p.185). This is high, but it is clearly presented in the Plan as the target for population growth. So the implied per capita growth target is 4%, and that is below the expected rate of inflation (not given in the Plan, but as you suggest could be around 5%). We’re not saying the MTDP IV intentionally projected declining average living standards, but that’s what its numbers actually imply.

Thank for disseminating informative information, indeed urgent action is required to ensure health and well-being of PALM workers are protected. Cultural support workers from the community are vital for an equal balance of power and to eradicate rife exploitation that is currently happening. As a Migrant from the Pacific, its very disgusting to find that death rates of the PALM workers have increased significantly in the last financial year. Not only that terminal illness have increased as well and then isolating them from family is total cruelty. It goes to show how arrogant and selfish employers can be. Criminalisation of such approved employers should be a wake up call to Australia to be aware that the migrant community are very aware of slavery. The benefit should be balanced, at the moment it is biased and needs fixing or things will get severely worse. If Australia continues to send Pacific dead bodies home, then what type of relationship is Australia trying to foster? It better be a wake up call for radical change because frustration has reached its peak.

[Conflict of interest alert - I work for the PNG Government] Table 3.2 on page 15 of the MTDP IV sets out the specific GDP projections in the plan. These show an increase from an estimated GDP in 2022 of K107bn (the actual outcome was better at K111bn based on latest forecasts) to K164bn in 2027, an increase of 53% over 5 years. The nominal growth rate in GDP is therefore not 6.8% set out in this article, but 9% per annum compounded. Allowing for 5% inflation, and population growth rate of 3.1%, this implies an increase in real GDP per capita of around 1% per annum. This is not falling standards. Disappointed by the standards of this analysis - with a focus on the Executive Summary and page 2, not the more detailed analysis provided in the Plan. There are uncertainties about PNG's current level of population, and therefore its population growth rate. This year's population census will hopefully assist with this. At this stage, the above comments are based on the previous NSO estimates of a growth rate of 3.1%. This is still higher than the figures used by the World Bank and others (including previous analysis by the ANU such as the 2.7% rate used in the UPNG/ANU economic database). Lower population growth rates would increase the annual increase in real living standards. Of course, PNG is looking to lift these real economic growth targets even further. This is why the Pangu Party policy is targeted at lifting real non-resource GDP growth rates by at least 5% per year. This allows for steady increases in real living standards, and even small annual gains can compound to major advances over decades. This comment does not address other issues within the MTDP IV. However, the headline of this article is arguably misleading and therefore the focus of this response.

Let's just decided on the favour decisions rather than any talks ,comments, discrimination and so on .. because we waited for so long....

Waste of time and money to elect, ward councilors and create new wards which the government of PNG does not fund. I was elected on last election and has not received any form of funding from the any government agencies.

Thank you for the response Raphael. We appreciate your interest. Wholesale internet prices are regulated in Papua New Guinea by the telecommunication regulator NICTA (the National Information and Communications Technology Authority). In September 2020, NICTA was in the midst of a process of seeking inputs from members of the public and interested parties in relation to wholesale internet pricing. In the same month, September 2020, an announcement was made by the Asian Development Bank about an investment with Fiji’s Amalgamated Telecom Holdings (ATH) for the purpose of supporting a new 4G mobile telecommunications network in Papua New Guinea. (We provided a link to the ADB’s announcement in the third paragraph of the blog post.) Therefore, as the issue was not yet resolved at that time, ATH cannot have been sure about what would happen with wholesale internet price regulation. By the way, Raphael, we also wanted to mention to you another key player. PNG DataCo sets prices and sells wholesale data to internet service providers and mobile network operators in PNG. Amanda and Moses

Excellent points. Disaggregation of livestock data is essential to support better decision making in relation to gender and also in relation to production systems. Crucial issues such as GHGe and nutrient profiles of products vary significantly across production systems, however, there is insufficient publicly available data on which to base sound decision making.

Thank you for this analysis. It underscores a good lesson in general for PNG on how competition and private sector input can influence pricing trends - not to mention reliability and accessibility for the general population. Some of us remember the service levels when there was one state owned enterprise providing the service. Hopefully this learning will extend to electricity generation one day. Great to hear that Starlink have been granted a licence to operate in PNG. This might provide further downward pressure on internet prices and be a service to households and much needed boost to business conditions.

GBADs has recently estimated that globally there is US$1.6 trillion invested in livestock and they produce annually an output of US$1.7 trillion (<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211912423000524" rel="nofollow ugc">https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211912423000524</a>). Livestock are the biggest rural investment after land itself and often the main capital asset for millions of people in rural areas. Yet we have no international dataset to help us disaggregate this huge investment by gender and this hampers what we say with regards achieving the gender SDGs.

Thanks Jonathan. Yes, livestock ownership is definitely a gendered issue. It impacts women directly by preventing them for having control over particular types of livestock, and also indirectly in that animal health and production services often prioritise livestock owned by men to the detriment of the small livestock species more likely to be under the control of women.

Impressive

Great blog Robyn, I would add that ownership of livestock is also an issue for women in many places.