Customary Land

Self sufficiency

Eighty-five percent of the population in Papua New Guinea, over 7 million people, live in rural communities on their own ‘customary’ land.

For these people their land is their supermarket, hardware store, pharmacy and cash machine.

The land provides food to eat from gardens and hunting, water, medicines, fuel for cooking, materials to build houses and make ropes, fences, baskets, tools and weapons.

The land also binds families, clans and communities together. It provides social cohesion, sustains cultural identity and underlies spiritual beliefs.

Customary land is the foundation for a huge economy based around subsistence agriculture and the informal sector that is worth more than K40 billion a year. This economy is many times larger than the ‘formal’ export economy but it is largely ignored by the advocates of land alienation.

False claims

Large corporations see customary land in Papua New Guinea as a huge resource that they want to acquire and profit from. They are trying to address the ‘omissions’ of the colonial era and take control of customary land in PNG as part of an ideological war that relies on international finance groups, corporate think-tanks, aid programs and local elites.

Corruption

Corruption is a huge problem in PNG. It is estimated up to half the government’s annual development budget is stolen and there are many examples of corrupt and unlawful land deals. The worst example was the SABL land grab in which fraudulent agriculture leases were used to unlawfully acquire rights to more than 50,000 square kilometres of customary land - more than 12% of the whole country.

Corruption plays two important roles in the land debate in Papua New Guinea.

Promoting Customary Land

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The Real Value of Customary Land

Value of customary land highlighted

On 23 May, 2017 By ACTNOW

The value of customary land when left in local hands and the issue of compensation for the SABL land grab have both been highlighted in a seminar organised by ACT NOW!

The seminar featured Sydney University academic Dr Tim Anderson. Dr Anderson presented his report on assessing compensation for the wrongful loss of customary land.

The event was featured by all the TV networks in their evening news programs - their coverage can be viewed below.

Assessing compensation for the wrongful loss of customary land

On 22 May, 2017 By ACTNOW

The SABL land grab has once again raised the issue of compensation for rural communities when outsiders unlawfully occupy or cause damage on their land. How do you assess the losses when there are no market values for customary land in Papua New Guinea?

Framework for Assessing Compensation for the Wrongful Loss of Customary Land

Papua New Guinea's real economy

On 19 May, 2017 By ACTNOW

Corporations fill the media with talk about large-scale industries, resource extraction and export earnings. However, Papua New Guinea’s real, rural based, mainstream economy is far bigger and deserves much greater attention.

Effrey Dademo and Tim Anderson

Custodians, not “Landowners”

On 15 May, 2017 By ACTNOW

Most land in Papua New Guinea is occupied and controlled by clans or communities. They have extensive rights over how the land is used and who has access. These rights are recognized in our Constitution and Land laws. This ‘customary’ land has provided the basis for our very existence for generations. Without our land, we cannot survive.