BY BARNABAS MANEBONA
CENTRAL Islands Province (CIP) is yet to start from suggestion as it is time Ngella and CIP islanders as a whole try setting up business holding companies to drive the private sector.
This is according to CIP’s Provincial Secretary (PS), Christian Siale.
For example if one has $10,000 and collect a thousand people and invest the money, the provincial government will offer a land for them to drive the private sector such as operating a touring company around Tulaghi. From such will create Ngella people having shares in companies.
“There is no competition at this stage but given the development right now, I am sure that in two years time, Tulaghi will regularly be a visited town by visitors to visit tourism sites and relics as the provincial government is quite serious about this one,” said the PS.
“We are now investing around $80,000 to upgrade all the World War II and heritage sites and also the access to them. You will notice that we have established a youth and women partnership in upholding the cleanliness of zones such as at the “Number One House area” (First British Residential High Commissioners house) in Tulaghi Township.
“Those are some of the initiatives we are working on. Though being very small by the province, we are also seeking NGO partners and funding to enhance more with those partnerships including landscaping and getting the right people to organise appealing presentation so that the value for the product and activities will come. That is at start right now with those sites.”
The PS clarified that the Tourism Division will market the initiative to have other funding coming in from the national Government and probably NGO’s on those areas to enhance further.
“As we understand the Provincial Government is limited with finance to service grants only, we are making the outermost use of the limited funds,” said the PS.
“The rest of the funds will have to come out from the Capital Funds of the main line ministries and that is subject to bidding and presentation bearing planning and budgeting queries with the mainline ministries.”
CIP’s Premier Hon Patrick Vasuni is urging landowners and communities of the rural areas to go forward to them in order to work together for a better future for the province.
Currently, the Central provincial government is embarking on a number of policy papers trying to translate to the policy paper of land partnership in order to have access to land with landowners.
This follows what will happen after the banning of logging in Ngella goes into place.
Second is the diversification of tourism by revitalising on it. This includes other private sector economic activities.
