l wilson kamit : policy and regulatory environment for business address by mr l wilson kamit, cbe, governor of the bank of papua new guinea, to the 21st australia papua new guinea business forum, cairns, australia, 1 - 3 may 2005. * * * introduction honourable ministers from the governments of papua new guinea and australia, mr. alan walter, president of the australia - papua new guinea business council, mrs. winifred kamit, president of the business council of papua new guinea, members of both councils, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. i am honoured and pleased with your invitation to address this forum again. the macroeconomic stability seen in papua new guinea during the last three years, for me as the governor of the central bank, is like breathing of fresh unpolluted air. steady continuous high foreign exchange inflows ; fiscal discipline ; balance of payments and fiscal surpluses ; enabled the bank of papua new guinea to pursue a stable exchange rate ; which has led to low inflation and allowed for a reduction in domestic interest rates. the recent reports of a net profit of k85 million by the bank south pacific and k120 million by the posf from their 2004 operations, a k58 million net profit by nasfund for the first quarter of 2005, announcements of expansion in business operations, and a pick - up in construction activity, are good indicators of improvements in economic activity. a large number of companies, including banks declaring dividends and paying them to both their domestic and overseas shareholders, are a further indication of an increase in economic activity and that there is renewed confidence and optimism in the business community. i hope that we will continue to receive this type of news from the many other firms and industries in papua new guinea in the coming months. the stable macroeconomic climate experienced in papua new guinea over the last three years is expected to continue in 2005. whilst this is obviously positive news, those of us tasked with ensuring a conducive environment for economic growth and management of the nation ’ s economic affairs, are constantly challenged towards ensuring its sustainability. the contribution of the central bank was, providing a stable interest rate and exchange rate regime through a conducive monetary policy as well as developing the necessary infrastructure for a sound financial system. this was implemented through the legislative changes introduced in 2000 and 2001. we constantly ask ourselves as to how else we can promote business activities in papua new guinea. in this same forum last year i alluded to the bank

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