Chief Secretary to Government, van Pomaleu, OBE has officiated at the 2025 Provincial Administrators Conference held at the APEC Haus in Port Moresby, National Capital District on 28 August, 2025.
The primary objective of this conference is to present the progress made on the 2023 Governor’s Conference Resolutions, which was tasked by the Government to implementing these resolutions over the last two years from 2024-2025.
At the 2023 Governors’ Conference, 30 resolutions were passed. Among these were the appointment of Governor for Morobe Province, Honourable Luther Wenge, as the Head of the Bi-partisian Committee and Dr. Thomas Webster as the Head of the Technical Task Team to oversee the implementation of these resolutions.
In his welcome address, the Chief Secretary welcome Minister for Provincial and Local Level Government Affairs Honourable Soroi Eoe, MP, Provincial Administrators and staff of the Department of Provincial and Local Level Government Affairs at the 2025 Provincial Administrators Conference.
Chief Secretary Pomaleu said this gathering represents an integral part of whole-of• government administration process, where lessons and experience are shared, pressing issues are discussed, and outcomes are escalated to the appropriate forums for deliberation and consideration.
“Today’s conference is equally significant with an interesting and impactful lineup of topics that are sure to generate meaningful dialogue,” he said.
This includes recent rebranding of the Department of Local Level Government Affairs, as well the launch of the Corporate Plan and the announcement of their new restructure last week.
“As the oversight department for sub-national governments, this rebranding signifies a recaliberation and repostioning effort to enhance accountability, governance and ultimately service delivery across the country,” he said.
The Chief Secretary added that the Department will provide an update on some of the key initiatives it has led, demonstrating the progress made in strengthening its role as a Central Coordinating Body for provincial and LLG-level administration.
Mr. Pomaleu reaffirmed that these efforts are a testament to the Government’s commitment to improving service delivery and fostering collaboration at all levels of government.
Among the highlights in this conference is the presentation of the Technical Tasks Tearns report, which proposes a new Provincial Government system.
“This is a ground breaking step and your input has not only as a key stakeholder but advises to the governors will be a pivotal way forward,” he said.
The Chief Secretary told the administrators that this conference provides a unique opportunity to reflect on our collective effort, share insights, and align our strategies to improve governance and service delivery across Papua New Guinea.
“I urged you all to engage actively in the discussions and deliberations, as the outcomes will serve as the foundations of the next phase of our journey in strengthening and decentralization of provincial administrations,” Mr. Pomaleu concluded. This is the second Provincial Administration Conference to be hosted this year. The first conference was staged earlier at the direction of the Prime Minister which is focused on critical discussions surrounding the Local Level Government elections