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PNG seeking foreign cocoa loan

The Papua New Guinea Government is negotiating .an overseas loan of SA2O million from low interest aid sources to redevelop privately-owned cocoa plantations.

Funds from the loan will be allocated only to Papua New Guineans, many of whom are now operating small plan tations which were split up

from larger estates previously

owned by Australians and other foreign interests.

The changeover from foreign-owned to local-owned properties has created prob lems in the industry because of the lack of management and planting skills, together with economic changes created by the splitting of large proper ties.

The PNG Cocoa Industry Board has made several approaches to the PNG Development Bank for aid in

reviving the cocoa growing

industry. However the approaches were not com pletely successful because guarantees of land tenure were not always available as loan securities and there was a lack of skilled staff to supervise the application of loans made to smallholders.

The funds will now come from the overseas loan which the government is negotiating.

The Cocoa Industry Board is now preparing recommenda tions on how the money should be applied and supervised.

Cocoa exports from PNG have been falling off for sev eral years, but industry advisers say the potential for export earnings is still high provided the home industry can get aid funds to redevelop and replant properties.