MOROBE VILLAGE DOESN'T SELL BUT LEASES LAND TO CHINESE CONSTRUCTION COMPANY

A Community 25 kilometers away from Lae City, along the Lae-Nadzab Highway in the Morobe Province of Papua New Guinea has made a move that will allow them to stay in control of their land during the 600 million kina upgrade to the Highway.

Yalu locals have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Chinese Railway international to allow them to lease land for a base camp, while they build the six hundred million kina highway.

Yalu Village

The Mapong Business Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the company on Friday, 17^th January 2014 at a ceremony witnessed by the community.

“We aren’t selling the land, we are leasing the land,” says, Dominic Mark spokes person of the Business Group established to manage commercial land owned and leased by several Yalu clans to the Chinese company.

“This land will be their base camp, everything will be stationed here, while they build there base camp,” he said.

With this arrangement the people will be compensated through the Business Group-the land, hasn’t been sold to the company, it has been registered has commercial land owned by the Business group owned by the Yalu clans.

 The idea is to generate revenue for the people’s coffers and provide employment to youth’s and keep them out of trouble.

Mapong Business Group

The Business group has discussed working conditions for the locals, and it’s understood that two agreements were signed on the fifteenth of this month, that includes arrangements that should suit landowners.

“ The conditions are contained in two agreements signed on the 15^th of this month (January 2014),” he said.

Chinese railway international is the same company spear heading the  muti-million kina Lae Ports extension.

During the signing of the Lease agreement on Friday, the company’s management said they are perfecting their involvement to the satisfaction of the people. 

China Railway International

The government has pumped over 600 million kina into the four Lane Highway from Lae to the Nadzab airport, the first phase will start at Bugandi Secondary School and end at the Bulolo Highway junction.

This is something thaty the government has been trying to get across, that people should form groups, register their land under it and lease it out and not sell it. 

Trade and Commerce Minister, Richard Maru on his visit to the area last year for cocoa projects has also ensured that the people keep stake in their lands and as more people become aware of the value of their land, they now have the opportunity to safe guard what they’ve inherit- keep in control of  their birth right and not become spectators in developments happening right at their doorstep.