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About Papua New GuineaGeographyPapua New Guinea is the largest developing country in the South Pacific region. Its 463,000 square kilometres of land area, a sea area of 3.12 million square kilometres and 600 separate islands make up one of the most diverse repositories of geographic, biological, linguistic and cultural wealth on earth. PNG has more than 5% of the world's biodiversity in less than 1% of the world's total land area. PopulationPNG's population in 2007 is 6.25 million (2000 Census estimate) and growing by an annual average rate of 2.7%. Approximately half of PNG's total population is under 19 years old. The fastest growing provinces are Southern Highlands Province, West New Britain, National Capital District and Western Province which all have population growth rates over 3%. Most of the population live in rural communities based on the traditional village structure and dependent on subsistence farming supplemented by cash cropping. Less than 15% of Papua New Guineans live in urban areas EconomyPNG has a relatively small dual economy, comprising a formal and informal economy. The formal economy is dominated by large-scale resource projects, particularly in mining and petroleum, and provides a large proportion of government revenue. The informal economy supports 85% of the people through semi-subsistence agriculture. The formal sector employs around 15% of the workforce. PNG has an abundance of natural resources including:
Despite the potential of these resources PNG's economic performance has fallen short of expectations. Following a relatively stable macroeconomic performance in the first decade after independence, PNG experienced a series of macroeconomic crises in the 1990s, arising predominantly from unsustainable fiscal expansions in a climate of weak and declining governance. PNG is currently experiencing an economic recovery, with improvements in several macroeconomic indicators. The PNG economy returned to growth in 2003 after 3 years of decline. The 2007 PNG Budget estimates real GDP growth of 3.7 per cent for 2006 and forecasts 4.5 per cent real GDP growth for 2007. The kina has appreciated, inflation has trended down and interest rates are lower. Foreign reserves are now at comfortable levels. The improvement in macroeconomic performance has not, however, translated into improved service delivery. PNG continues to face considerable medium-term economic challenges. Concerns include degraded infrastructure, law and order problems and the economic cost of a large but ineffective public service. Social indicatorsPNG's population has suffered significant declines in living standards in recent years due to worsening economic performance. Although the country does not exhibit the widespread abject poverty present in some developing countries, poor health and social indicators show that poverty is a real problem. PNG's main social indicators, such as life expectancy and maternal and child mortality rates, show improvements since 1975, but are still well below the averages for lower middle income countries (LMICs). PNG still has limited primary health care. Infectious diseases are claiming many lives, and there are serious public health risks from endemic diseases such as malaria, and an emerging HIV/AIDS epidemic. An estimated 2% of people in PNG carry the virus. In education, the rate of participation in primary schooling is improving, but it remains lower than in most other countries in the region. Basic social and economic indicators
Sources July 2007
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