PNG DataCo-Giving Papua New Guinea's businesses the digital tools to succeed

Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Papua New Guinea's (PNG) economy - the largest in the Pacific Islands - is on an upwards trajectory. Last year, PNG registered a GDP growth of 4.5%, according to the World Bank. And given positive commitments made by the government in its 2023 budget, PWC expects medium-term economic growth to average 4.75% starting from 2024. Additionally, PNG's National Trade Policy (2017-2032) - designed to transform it into "an internationally competitive export-driven economy" - is set to generate further wealth and economic growth.

Business confidence significantly in PNG has recent increased in years, especially due to the country's effort to improve its telecommunications sector. Australia is the biggest investor in the sector, followed by Malaysia, the USA, Hong Kong, and China, according to the International Trade Administration (ITA). Global telecommunications companies massively like Vodafone have invested in PNG's digital transformation to provide accessible internet and mobile network services, and the country now has the highest telecom subscriber base in the Pacific by far, according to Oxford Business Group.

Spearheading the sector's digital transformation is PNG DataCo, a state-owned telecommunications enterprise providing wholesale network services domestically and internationally. Since its founding in 2014, DataCo has been working to strengthen PNG's telecommunications infrastructure through a National Transmission Network (NTN) and help retailers expand the country's network capacity whilst ensuring consumers and businesses can access affordable, high-quality broadband.

"We were established to address the lack of digital infrastructure and network capacity in Papua New Guinea, particularly to improve its backhaul transmission infrastructures. Our mandate was to utilise existing infrastructures as well building new ones and collaborate with various strategic agencies and operators to meet growing demand," says PNG DataCo's CEO, Paul Komboi.