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___ Papua New Guinea

Mount Tavurvur on the island of New Britain
Mount Tavurvur, an active stratovolcano, it is one of the many sub-vents of the Rabaul caldera on the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea.
Image: Taro Taylor
 
Papua New Guinea Flag
Flag of Papua New Guinea
Location map of Papua New Guinea. Where in Oceania is Papua New Guinea?
Location map of Papua New Guinea

A virtual guide to Papua New Guinea (PNG), a group of islands and an idependent state in Maritime Southeast Asia. Its mainland on the island of New Guinea is bordered by Indonesia. Papua New Guinea shares maritime borders with Australia, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Solomon Islands, and New Caledonia (France). Major islands are New Britain, Latangai, Bougainville,

PNG covers a land area of 462,840 km² (178,703 sq. mi.), this is somewhat smaller than Spain, or slightly larger than California.

Most of the population of over 7.2 million people (2012) live in communities that are as diverse as their languages. Papua New Guinea is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world with more than 800 native languages of which 12 have no living speakers. Main spoken languages are English (official) and Tok Pisin (an English-based Creole). Capital and largest city is Port Moresby.



Papuaniugini - Independent State of Papua New Guinea


Country Profile



Background:
The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997, after claiming some 20,000 lives.


related countries: Australia, Germany, United Kingdom

 

Official Name:
Papuaniugini
short form: Papua New Guinea
int'l long form: Independent State of Papua New Guinea
int'l short form: Papua New Guinea
former: Territory of Papua and New Guinea
abbr.: PNG

ISO Country Code: pg, PNG

Time:
Local Time = UTC +10h
Actual Time: Fri-Oct-4  02:12

Country Calling Code: +675

Capital City: Port Moresby (pop. 350 000)

Other Cities: Lae (78 000), Mt. Hagen (28 000).


Government:
Type: Constitutional monarchy with parliamentary democracy.
Independence: 16 September 1975 (from the Australian-administered UN trusteeship)
Constitution: September 16, 1975.

Geography:
Location: Oceania, Group of islands including the eastern half of the island of New Guinea between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean, east of Indonesia.
Area: 462,840 km² (178,703 sq. mi.)
Terrain: Mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling foothills. The majority of the people live in fertile highlands valleys that were unknown to the outside world until the 1930s, but that supported agriculture some 10,000 years ago, possibly before agriculture was developed elsewhere.
Highest point: Mount Wilhelm 4 509 m

Climate: Tropical. NW monsoon, Dec-Mar. SE monsoon, May-Oct.

People:
Nationality: Papua New Guinean(s)
Population: 7,2 million (2012)
Ethnic Groups: Melanesian, Papuan, Negrito, Micronesian, Polynesian
Religions: Christians 66%, indigenous beliefs 34%
Languages: Three official: English, Tok Pisin, and Motu. There are approximately 860 other languages.
Literacy - total population: 55-60%

Natural resources: Gold, copper, silver, natural gas, timber, oil, fisheries.

Agriculture products: Coffee, cocoa, copra, palm kernels, tea, sugar, rubber, sweet potatoes, fruit, vegetables, vanilla; shell fish, poultry, pork.

Industries: Copra crushing, palm oil processing, plywood production, wood chip production; mining of gold, silver, and copper; crude oil production, petroleum refining; construction, tourism.

Exports - commodities: oil, gold, copper ore, logs, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, crayfish, prawns

Exports partners: Japan 17.4%, Australia 15.9%, China 12.1% (2015)

Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, fuels, chemicals

Imports partners: Australia 25.9%, China 20%, Singapore 12.6%, Malaysia 7.2%, USA 4.2%, Indonesia 4.1%, South Korea 4% (2015)

Currency: Kina (PGK)
 
The National Parliament of Papua New Guinea is located in Port Moresby.
The National Parliament of Papua New Guinea is located in Port Moresby.
Image: Drew Douglas

Political system
The Independent State of Papua New Guinea is a constitutional monarchy and a Commonwealth realm with a parliamentary democracy.
Chief of state is the monarch of the United Kingdom, represented by a governor-general who is nominated by parliament. Head of government is the prime minister. The prime minister is appointed and dismissed by the governor-general on the proposal of parliament.
There are three levels of government - national, provincial and local. Its National Parliament is a unicameral legislature elected for five-year terms, but it is characterized by weak political parties and highly unstable parliamentary coalitions. The judicial system is based on the British model, with a network of district courts.


Official Sites of Papua New Guinea

Note: External links will open in a new browser window.

Government of Papua New Guinea

The Official Entry Point to the Government of Papua New Guinea.

Prime Minister's Office of Papua New Guinea
Sir Mekere Morauta's Office.

The National Parliament of Papua New Guinea

Office of Information and Communication


Diplomatic Missions
Embassy of Papua New Guinea
Papuas in America.

Statistics
National Statistical Office of Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea in figures.

Intergovernmental organizations
Pacific Islands Forum
Inter-governmental organization for the cooperation between the countries of the Pacific Ocean.
Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC)
Intergovernmental organization of the Pacific islands.


Maps

profile Map of Papua New Guinea
Political Map of Papua New Guinea.

Google Earth Google Earth Papua New Guinea
Searchable map and satellite view of Papua New Guinea.
Google Earth Google Earth Port Moresby
Searchable map and satellite view of Papua New Guinea's capital city.

Map of Melanesia
Map of the Island States of Melanesia.
profile Map of Oceania and the Pacific Islands
Reference map of Australia and the Pacific.




 

News


The National
Papua New Guinea daily.
The Post-Courier
National news, Port Moresby.

TV
HiTRON
A private satellite/cable tv broadcaster.

International News Sources
BBC News Country Profile: Papua New Guinea
With links to PNG related news and background information.

Search Google for News from Papua New Guinea

 

Bookmark/share this page
Instagram

Tribal dancers, Goroka, Eastern Highlands, Papua New Guinea
Tribal dancers, Goroka, Eastern Highlands, Papua New Guinea.
Image: Anselmo Lastra

Arts & Culture


Artifacts and Crafts of Papua New Guinea
About the world of "primitive" art Papua New Guinea.

Music Archive for Papua New Guinea
Information on the uses of PNG traditional music in ritual.

Papua New Guinea Gossip Newsletter
An open forum, intended for ALL people interested in Papua New Guinea.
 
Papua Mt Hagen Female Dancer
Female Dancer at Mt Hagen Cultural Show. Mount Hagen is the third largest city in Papua New Guinea.
Image: Waywuwei

Business & Economy

Much of the population of Papua New Guinea relies on subsistence farming. The country has a mixed economy in which a lack of a market economy has resulted in state monopolies in some sectors of the economy.
Papua New Guinea sits atop vast, untapped reserves of almost 155 billion cubic meters of natural gas, providing for a huge export opportunity for the country, its liquefied natural gas (LNG) project is the largest resource extraction project in the Asia-Pacific region.


Bank of Papua New Guinea
The central bank of Papua New Guinea.

Bank of South Pacific
BSP is the largest bank in PNG.

Port Moresby Stock Exchange
POMSoX is the principal stock exchange of Papua New Guinea.

Papua New Guinea Business Resources
A searchable database of companies arranged by service categories

__ Transportation
Transport in Papua New Guinea is heavily limited by the country's mountainous terrain. Lae, the capital of Morobe Province and the second-largest city in Papua New Guinea is the largest cargo port of the country and is the industrial hub of PNG. At Lae is the start of the Highlands Highway, the main land transport corridor between the Highlands region and the coast.

__Air
Air travel is the most important form of transport for human and freight.
Even today the two largest cities, Port Moresby and Lae, are only directly connected by planes (or boats).

Airline
Air Niugini
The National Airline of Papua New Guinea.

Jacksons International Airport
Chief international airport in Papua New Guinea.
 
20 Kina note
White Island, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea
White Island, Autonomous Region of Bougainville.
Image: Jeremy Weate

Travel and Tour Consumer Information


Destination Papua New Guinea - Travel and Tour Guides


Discover Papua New Guinea: Alotau, Finschhafen, Madang, Port Moresby, Sepik River (longest river), Mount Wilhelm (highest mountain); Tavurvur (active stratovolcano on New Britain); Trobriand Islands, Tufi, Kokoda Trail.

Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority
Official tourism site and a guide to Papua New Guinea.


web culture Papua New Guinea Online
First site on Papua New Guinea (PNG) that was developed and is maintained by Papua New Guineans.


 
 

Education


University of Papua New Guinea
Underfunded public university with two major campuses in Port Moresby. Waigani main campus and Taurama Medical Faculty.

The Papua New Guinea University of Technology
Unitech is located 9 km north of Lae, capital of the Morobe Province of Papua New Guinea.
 
 
Papua New Guinea's highlands mountain range
Papua New Guinea's highlands, the highlands are the central mountain range on the island of Papua.
Image: eGuide Travel

Environment & Nature

Environment Issues:
Rain forest subject to deforestation as a result of growing commercial demand for tropical timber; pollution from mining projects; severe drought.

Insect Ecology in New Guinea
Insect diversity in the rain forests of Papua New Guinea.
Papua New Guinea Orchid News
Site about Niugini's Orchids.
South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP)
The Pacific region's major intergovernmental organization charged with protecting and managing the environment and natural resources.
 
 

History


Papua New Guinea : History
Papua New Guinea History - by The Commonwealth.

Brief History and major events of Papua New Guinea
by the Embassy of Papua New Guinea.

History of Papua New Guinea
Wikipedia page about the history of Papua New Guinea.
 
 

Sources and additional Information about Papua New Guinea


Amnesty International: Papua New Guinea

BBC Country Profile: Papua New Guinea

Commonwealth, The - Papua New Guinea

FAO: Papua New Guinea

GlobalEDGE: Papua New Guinea

The Heritage Foundation: Papua New Guinea

Human Rights Watch: Papua New Guinea

OEC: Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea Virtual Library

Reporters Without Borders: Papua New Guinea

UNDP Papua New Guinea
United Nations Development Programme in PNG.

Wikipedia: Papua New Guinea

The World Factbook -- Papua New Guinea


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