Private guides and guided tours in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea

CAPITAL CITY OF Papua New Guinea: Port Moresby
LANGUAGE OF Papua New Guinea: English
CURRENCY OF Papua New Guinea: Kuna (HRK)
COMMENTS ABOUT Papua New Guinea:

Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands
Best Places : Port Moresby, Zoological gardens, the Parliament building, island of New Britain, Mt. Hagen, Beautiful Madang, Wewak, the gateway to the Sepik, Kokoda Track Calling code : +675
Time zone : AEST (UTC+10)
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.

CLIMATE OF Papua New Guinea: tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation
RELIGION OF Papua New Guinea: Roman Catholic 22%, Lutheran 16%, Presbyterian / Methodist / London Missionary Society 8%, Anglican 5%, Evangelical Alliance 4%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1%, other Protestant 10%, indigenous beliefs 34%
POPULATION OF Papua New Guinea: 5,420,280 (July 2004 est.)>>>
ECONOMY OVERVIEW OF Papua New Guinea: Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by rugged terrain and the high cost of developing infrastructure. Agriculture provides a subsistence livelihood for 85% of the population. Mineral deposits, including oil, copper, and gold, account for 72% of export earnings. The economy has faltered over the past four years. Former Prime Minister Mekere MORAUTA had tried to restore integrity to state institutions, to stabilize the kina, restore stability to the national budget, to privatize public enterprises where appropriate, and to ensure ongoing peace on Bougainville. The government has had considerable success in attracting international support, specifically gaining the backing of the IMF and the World Bank in securing development assistance loans. Challenges face Prime Minister Michael SOMARE, including curbing inflation, gaining further investor confidence, continuing efforts to privatize government assets, maintaining the support of members of Parliament, and balancing relations with Australia, the former colonial ruler.