Prime Minister Hon. James Marape has formally commended the Member for Kokopo, Hon. Ereman ToBaining Jnr., for his leadership of the Kokopo City Authority Board in delivering the newly-completed Kokopo City Hall infrastructure.
Speaking at the official opening ceremony in Kokopo on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, Prime Minister Marape highlighted the project as a critical achievement for local administrative capacity and the broader modernization of East New Britain Province.
The Prime Minister confirmed that the national government provided the capital funding for the landmark construction project, which will centralize municipal operations and expand public service delivery.
Under the current revenue distribution framework, 20 percent of the provincial Goods and Services Tax (GST) remittance is allocated directly to the Kokopo City Authority, providing the local administration with approximately K1 million per month to run its city operations.
Prime Minister Marape also extended his commendation to East New Britain Governor Hon. Michael Marum and the provincial administrative leadership, including Provincial Administrator Levi Mano, for their roles in maintaining effective front-line governance.
PM Marape praised Governor Marum’s pragmatic, action-oriented approach in leadership, saluting him for prioritizing concrete community outcomes over political rhetoric, remaining on the ground to advance provincial interests, and ensuring an equitable distribution of public revenues to lower-level government authorities.
The commissioning of the new City Hall aligns with a targeted national strategy to integrate Kokopo into Papua New Guinea’s “Big 4” municipal network alongside Port Moresby, Lae, and Mt Hagen.
To support the district’s designation as the country’s primary tourism hub, the Prime Minister announced the upcoming December launch of the “Go Kokopo” tourism campaign. Being developed alongside the Ministry of Tourism and the Mineral Resources Development Company (MRDC), the initiative will seek to introduce specialized tax and financial incentives to stimulate private hospitality and commerce investments across the Gazelle Peninsula.
During his address, Prime Minister Marape outlined several concurrent State-backed infrastructure projects designed to support the region’s long-term economic expansion:
- Transit Infrastructure: Active four-year road-sealing contracts are currently underway to link Tokua Airport directly to Kokopo township. This is being complemented by a runway extension funded by the national government and a terminal upgrade to be funded by the Government of Japan.
- Power and Energy: The National Executive Council has authorized formal negotiations with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to develop a 40-megawatt hydroelectric project in Pomio. The project will reinforce the regional power grid across East New Britain and West New Britain, supplementing the existing 5-megawatt capacity at Warangoi.
- Rabaul Restoration: The National Government has officially lifted the post-1994 volcanic eruption moratorium on Rabaul. In partnership with France and the European Union, plans have been approved to redevelop the Rabaul wharf, while the State continues to issue formal land titles to permanently relocated residents in re-settled areas such as Gelegele.
PM Marape also reported that the annual provincial GST remittance to East New Britain has risen to K40 million under his administration, up from sub-K40 million figures prior to 2019. He detailed the recent annual yields as K37 million in 2020, K41 million in 2021, K37 million in 2022, K34 million in 2023, and K44 million in 2024.
Concluding his remarks, the Prime Minister reemphasized that his office will no longer participate in groundbreaking ceremonies or preliminary project launches as the current five-year parliamentary term nears its conclusion in 2027. Moving forward, executive oversight will focus exclusively on commissioning fully completed public infrastructure between now and the National General Elections.