Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister James Marape has reaffirmed his country’s commitment to global conservation, emphasizing its role as a key guardian of biodiversity and natural resources.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Marape said, “We (PNG) hold a lot of stakes in the conversation on conservation.” He highlighted that Papua New Guinea hosts approximately 7% of the world’s biodiversity and shares the third-largest tropical rainforest with Indonesia.
Marape’s remarks came during a panel on financing conservation, organized by Conservation International. The discussion focused on addressing the funding gap for environmental preservation. Conservation International’s Patricia Zurita said, “We have created a global financing system that is rewarding anything but nature, yet we depend on nature for everything.”
The prime minister stressed the global importance of PNG’s vast natural resources, including its rainforests and marine ecosystems, positioning the country as a leader in conservation efforts. “People showed respect to PNG today because of what we have in nature in our biodiversity, rainforests, and marine resources,” he said.
Despite PNG’s international advocacy, local groups have criticized the government’s approach to tackling illegal logging and environmental degradation.