Papua’S Potential

Wealth

Vol. 1—No. 7

February, 1931

PAPUA is feeling the pinch at pre sent as much, if not more, than other Island Territories. Her two main industries, copra and rubber, were among the first to slump in price in the world-wide depression. As Papua is a young country, she has had little opportunity to build up reserves and therefore her strength to tide her over the trying times is not great.

The Lieutenant - Governor, Sir Hu bert Murray, in his last annual report, says: “Our poor economic success so far seems due to no lack of effort, but to sheer had fortune, but my con fidence in the future of Papua remains unshaken.” Undoubtedly, Papua will experience better times. The present state of affairs is teaching planters that it is inadvisable to restrict them selves to only two products. They are now looking round for other suitable crops to cultivate, and already coffee and sugar are being planted. Mean while, the Commonwealth Government has come to the aid of rubber pro ducers. It has granted them a bounty of 4d. per pound and has also im posed a duty of 4d. per pound on all rubber entering Australia from coun tries other than the Australian terri tories. This has resulted in the re opening of plantations and tapping is proceeding. Copra planters, as else where, have received a severe setback through the depressed market. How ever, the desiccated coconut factories have been absorbing quite an amount of green coconuts, for which a good price has been paid, and this has given some measure of relief to plan tations, especially those near the fac tories,; The desiccated coconut indus try is one which gives promise of steady develepment. It was established in 1926, when 40 tons were exported.

In 1927-28 108 tons were sent away.

This figure was more than doubled in the following year, the export value for the period being over £16,000.

There is no doubt that great mineral wealth exists within the Territory.

Gold so far produced has been worth over £2,000,000. A substantial portion of this amount has been due to the in dividual effort of prospectors, who worked the old fields. There is still a vast area of Papua of which little is known. Surely it is not too much to expect that somewhere a worth while gold find will be made. Should this not be the case, then, with mod ern methods of treatment, the working of some of the low-grade propositions should amply repay costs. Another in stance of Papua’s bad fortune is pro vided by the unsuccessful attempt to work her copper deposits. The New Guinea Copper Mines must have in vested about £500,000 in their efforts to develop the Astrolabe Mineral Field. They would probably have been successful, but for the fall in the price of copper in the post-war depression.

Petroleum is another mineral that

may be yet found in the tertiary rocks of the Territory. Although £1,000,000 has been already spent in looking for the elusive black gold, the geological information recently ob tained points more than ever to the possibilities of rich oil fields being dis covered. That fact can be surmised from the latest reports of the Anglo- Persian geologists, who have done much work in Papua and the adjoining Mandated Territory of New Guinea.

From the foregoing it will be seen that Papua possesses prospects above the ordinary. Her land can produce the best of tropical produce, and even now she exports copra, rubber, cocoa, coffee and cotton. Her mineral wealth is known to include gold, osmi ridium, silver and copper. She has a Government which is broad of vision, and her commercial concerns have proved that they have courage and enterprise. After weathering the pre sent storm, it is certain the Territory will forge ahead to more prosperous times.