The weekend is nigh and today is all about the number FIVE!


Five million Kina versus five hundred Kina, or K 5000 000 & K500. They don’t sound so different when you say them. They both have the number five and a couple of zero's attached to the end, BUT one has six zeroes and the other two but who's counting right? WRONG!!!! When you jot down those figures you, really look at them that you realize the difference is ridiculously obvious!

To the average person the difference between K500 and K5000 000 is a painfully HUGE and most people would be afraid to mess with that.

Now before we go on further, the one thing we must remember about figures - is that when they are attached to an object (although some cruel, evil people attach them to humans too) they denote (supposedly) value or worth. The greater the figure associated with something, the more valuable it is. Got that? Good.

Next lesson. When the figure associated with something is increased that means either both or one of two things: 1) that thing has been improved so it is more efficient, longer lasting or indestructible somehow; 2) that the demand for that thing is greater than the supply of it.

This brings us to Papua New Guinea, home and my pride where more land is owned by the traditional landowners than by the state. Of this state owned land 60% of it is located in Mosbi (Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea). Mosbi is the most RIDICULOUSLY expensive place to live within PNG AND it generates the least income. Mosbi to me is like the black hole of PNG income where it sucks the majority of the GNP and most of the infrastructure development happens here. Every 6 months you we see new buildings being built in Mosbi.


Back to the difference between K500 and K5000 000. Now take this into account, K500 is how much individuals or businesses pay to apply for an Urban Development Lease (UDL). This is the lease that the state (of PNG) awards individuals or businesses and this gives them the authority to develop land. FIVE HUNDRED KINA APPLICATION FEE!

The requirements are pretty simple: you must have a vision/plan; you must prove that you have the necessary resources (capital, assets, equipment, machinery, labor, expertise) to carry out your plans. Then the Land’s Board (which consists of a number of different stakeholders, they meet quarterly a year) is supposed to decide TOGETHER whom to award what to. These leases are for 5 years, if after 5 years the leased land is not developed the lease will be forfeited and these business or individuals must surrender the titles back to the Lands Board. If they don't surrender these titles the Lands Department is supposed to take over from there and decide what steps are necessary to take back a land title.

BUT alas – if you have seen the prices of renting or buying property in Mosbi you will know that it isn’t so! The genuine land developers with the means and know-how to create affordable, well-planned and safe structures are being pushed aside by greedy self serving indivudals/businesses and as a direct result settlements in Mosbi are growing ins size and number. Young working couples are moving into places like behind Garden Hills, Mango-mine, Vadavda, Tete and 9 mile settlements because K5000 a month rent for a decent sized flat in a zoned residential area is unaffordable. People are abusing these UDLs and paying excessive amounts to buy land from people that don’t have the authority to sell state land! In the end the developer or leaseholder should earn adequate profit, but honestly is K5 million an HONEST return?