We do not have a lost tribe in Papua New Guinea

the diversity of the country intertwined into the complexity of more than 800 cultures and traditions that are again connects to the nature; which the genealogy and theories will take ages to explain for Papua New Guinea & perception is 100% absurd 

Those news speculated in the media recently which are related to British adventurer Benedict Allen who got lost in a remote and isolated village in PNG mainland, get to read this article on the link below and digest the truth yourself. 

PNG is an adventurer's paradise, the highlands of PNG is tucked away in a rugged terrain with deep gorges, interconnecting ranges, fast-flowing rivers, vast swamps and valleys which forms alleys within the ranges that makes the places inaccessible and unexplored, yet an adventurer’s paradise awaits. The vegetation differs as well as the species of endemic flora and fauna which are rare to the natural habitat. 

The topography and climate also differ from the coastal low-lying islands, valleys and shores to the upper inland (highlands) with cooler climate which falls low as five degrees Celsius or zero during the morning and late afternoon. The highlands region has most of the fast-flowing rivers that have tributaries in the coast and has the highest peak at 4 509 meters above sea level which is apparent of the Bismarck range’s Mt. Wilhelm and highest in the Pacific region and half height of Mt. Everest. 

There are number of other mountains in highlands which are dormant volcanoes with height ranging from 2000-3000 above sea level; that includes, Mt. Hagen, Mt. Giluwe, Mt.Bosave and few others. 

While coastal PNG has scattered and isolated atoll to white sandy islands, fjords and tributaries of many river systems. The coastal regions have best marine biodiversity and isolated islands that are inhibited while some are densely populated. 

The highlands and coast of PNG are connected with Savanna grassland to mid-mountain forests connecting the topical and mountain rain-forests linking the interconnected ranges which ranks PNG the 3rd in the world. 

The early 30s and 60s perception about PNG is merely a hysteria in the minds of people who think they can live in the planet of the aliens to be super humans than the normal life we all humans live on this planet earth by going through changes in life by adapting into the changing world. 

PNG is a developing country and we are moving forward one step at a time with the changing world and past of the 30s life are the years gone with some generations. Looking at a country with more than 800 different cultures and ethnicity which presents Papua New Guinea uniquely diverse to the outside world. Our identities are within our cultures and traditions which we are born into and becomes the cultural values and prides of the individual’s lives, communities and the society we live in. 

It is only rational to comment on issues relating to PNG’s unexplored places and developments relating to rural villages or remote islands, only if one was born into PNG, lived and grew up in PNG then so he/she will get to say things from a perspective of a Papua New Guinean. Apparently, it is so cheap for a foreigner to speculate about a nation with twenty-one provinces and more than a thousand different tribes with diverse cultures and traditions with complex social orders and that genealogy can take ages to explain. But it’s still assumption-based theory that will never explain the whole complexity of PNG’s diversity in culture and the environment.  

The missionary's commentary on the link is fair enough to clarify the well renown media giant 'The Guardian’s speculations and perceptions related to Benedict Allen's planned adventure in Papua New Guinea that The Guardian alleged him to be lost and captured by a primitive and tribal cannibalism village in a remote inland PNG. Instead, Allen was safe at the place that he intended to visit and meet. A place that most people dream to be and meet with the assumed lost tribes that were born into cultures that intertwined into their traditions and customs which have values related to their natural environment that they live in. Hence, they live a self-sustaining life with less worry on the outside world and technology. 

How does it present threat apart from creating curiosity and interest to visit such a place that brings inquest back to hundred years with its people that have less connection with the modern world? Think again to say one negative thing out of the many positive aspects about the diversified nation of PNG which has twenty-two (22) provinces which can supposedly be states of their own or rather countries.  

Outside perceptions will never help nor change the way PNG people have lived, are living and will be living but gives insight to build resilience and patriotism in what we have compared to the outside world.

  There is no lost tribe in Papua New Guinea, we are moving with the change and developing our nation with one step at a time. Our cultures and traditions are our ways of life and connected to our natural environment which appears primitive to outside world, but Papua New Guineans were born into, they lived with and they will live through. 

Engan Male Wig and Face-painting 

On the 90th Anniversary of the First European Crossing Of New Guinea, “Explorer” Benedict Allen Claims to Have Done It For The First Time

The Niche Tourism Product a Rural Development Perspective

In PNG, most of the tourism products are based in the rural villages. The accessibility to the tourism product sites is one of the biggest challenges when it comes to tourism product development. PNG Tourism industry players, tour operators, service industry and the developers are faced with the challenges every time when in the business to develop, promote and market niche tourism products in PNG.

However, on the other side of the challenges are the opportunities to look at the challenges differently. The niche tourism product development at rural areas of PNG is definitely a vehicle for ecotourism promotion, sustainability and conservation related that meets the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Looking into the challenges differently, presents the benefit with huge potential to attract Special Interest Tourists (SIT) into rural areas of PNG.

The prospect of developing and promoting ecotourism and special interest tourism at the rural areas by way of increasing conservation related activities and projects that will entail development and basic services. The idea on this is to integrate tourism into community-oriented programs which can be partly volunteer tourism (Voluntourism) to drive the interest. The responsible government agencies and the development partners tasks are to look into rural tourism product developments seriously and support the initiatives by individuals and community-based organisations. The interrelating of community-oriented activities are to sustain cultural heritage tourism which will determine the interests for other tourist types while targeting Special Interest Tourists.

The exchange of idea and skills between tourists and the communities will improve the living standards in the rural areas. The incorporation of existing public services like education and health into promoting ecotourism as part of voluntourism will help the community sustain themselves economically and continue a resilience livelihood in the community.   

The community-based tourism related activities and product development will also emphasis the rich cultural heritage tourism that are not yet discovered in Papua New Guinea. The interest will attract researchers, specialists in fields of botany, ecology, archology and anthropology which sees PNG has the haven to complement their filed work.  

The secret to development be viewed as; the economic activity of a certain area triggers the changes in the community lifestyles and living standards by making way for other forms of developments and services improvement. The changes generated by the economic activities will attract the infrastructures like; roads, bridges and airstrips into the rural community.

The changes will continue in the process to bring development into the rural areas because of tourism related activities or growing interest in the niche tourism product development and promotion. Hence, with the establishment of the ecotourism management and voluntourism, the conservation and sustainability of the products and projects in the rural communities are major attention to meet Sustainable Development Goals of United Nations. 

This will most likely be the bottom up approach of the development on the rural communities in PNG with promotion of ecotourism and voluntourism at the rural areas.

The challenges now with the tour operators, the tourism industry association and stakeholders of the service industry is to look for the marketing strategies and concepts to promote ecotourism to draw the attention of the Special Interest Tourists to the rural communities for Birdwatching, Kayaking, Surfing, Hiking, Trekking, caving, camping, local food tasting and cultural heritage tourism.

The ecotourism and voluntourism concepts are the idealistic means to develop and promote niche tourism products at the rural villages of PNG. The challenges will only become obstacle in development for niche tourism products at the rural areas if we will never find a solution to overcome them. The view on the challenges to promote niche tourism at the rural areas of PNG is real but the opportunities it presents will put things into different perspective.

PNG need to market the undiscovered, unexplored and unexploited rural areas with a different view of PNG compared to what is seen and heard in the developing townships and urban centres of PNG.

There is so much to be explored in Papua New Guinea for tourism and it’s not just a place to promote only one tourism product but a country with diversity and adversity that presents both the opportunity and challenge.   

Hiya Village Children - Madang South Coast, PNG