PM visited Papua New Guinea.
- India’s focus on Pacific Islands as a counter to China’s focus on Mauritius, Sri Lanka and other Indian Ocean islands.
- India is ready to cooperate with Pacific Island countries in protecting their Exclusive Economic Zones
- PM made a pointed reference to Papua New Guinea’s natural resources and said there were many opportunities waiting to be seized as both countries had prioritised sustainable use of ocean and marine resources
- India will also pledge support to establish a pharmaceutical production unit here to meet the demand for life-saving medicines
India PNG MoUs:
- A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between India’s ministry of health and family welfare and Paua New Guinea’s ministry of health and HIV/AIDS for a broad range of cooperation in the field of healthcare and medical science.
- Another MoU was signed between the Papua New Guinea government and the Export Import Bank of India for a $100-million credit line for development of infrastructure in the island-nation.
- The third MoU was between the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi, and PNG University of Technology, Lae, for cooperation in agricultural research.
- The fourth MoU was signed between the governments of India and Papua New Guinea for establishing of India-Papua New Guinea Centre for Excellence in IT.
India is going to explore and develop Papua New Guinea’s vast oil and gas resources
- Through joint ventures and investments from both the Indian private and public sectors.
- It could be a new avenue of cooperation between the two countries, Papua New Guinea