Landowner identification still an issue

Landowner identification still remains an issue in resource projects. Dr Rodney Kamaeta from the Social Environmental Research and Consultancy services (SERACS) Ltd noted this during the PNG Resources Week today at Apec Haus.

Dr Kamaeta said the challenges that impede social mapping in resource impacted areas include landowner ownerships claims, past legacy issues from other projects, and population growth and resource scarcity.

“There's a couple of projects that we've been dealing with, with forestry issues coming on, and then trying to bring the forestry issues into the oil and gas business can be a challenge, and it's how you navigate and try to deal with those,” Dr Kamaeta said.

He noted that with that, land area tends to get smaller, and people away from the main clan and try to start splitting into lineages, family-based clans.

“A lot of them come out in the media and try to tell us that we are not being recognized for all of that,” he said. “Future generation is the other one that I've been asked to dwell a bit on, talk about. I think the future generation is really one of the critical ones, of which in the mining projects it's been dealt with through the MOA negotiations, in terms of that benefit sharing.”

Dr Kamaeta added that since the Customary Land Bill is in formalization, it is critical to review the Lands Act, in ensuring both acts are synchronizing and supporting each other to better serve its purposes when it comes to landowner and or clan identification.

SERACS Ltd is a Port Moresby-based consulting firm specializing in applied anthropology, environmental science, and social research in Papua New Guinea.