Tourism benefits Port Moresby city more: Barker

PORT Moresby’s tourism sector is benefiting more compared to other centres, Institute of National Affairs executive director Paul Barker says

Commenting on the country’s tourism industry, he said Port Moresby was being provided more customers and market opportunities given that big regional and national meetings and events were being held in the city.
“The national capital has sucked in increased numbers of regional and national tourists for cultural and sporting events and a few conferences,” Barker said.
“Clearly these are one-off and the need is to plan a steady flow of events, both to help justify and sustain the costly infrastructure and safeguard the major increase in hotel beds, which can never recover costs from some big event like the big planned Apec meeting for 2018 and associated lead-up gatherings.
“Some centres, like Madang, have been suffering from the relative concentration of public expenditure around NCDC and, less so, to a few other centres.
“But law and order disruption has tarnished Madang’s pristine and peaceful image, along with all the industrial activity associated with Ramu Nickel mine and offshore tailings, and the development of expanded industrial fisheries processing. “Some provinces, however, have made some progress with tourism such as Milne Bay, with a number of new hotels and guest houses offering some rural eco-tourism.