New digital MOU and cable talks signal closer PNG-Australia tech collaboration
Papua New Guinea and Australia have strengthened their digital partnership following an official visit by PNG’s Minister for Information and Communication Technology, Timothy Masiu, to Australia this week.
The five-day visit, held from June 15 to 20, included high-level meetings in Canberra and Sydney aimed at deepening cooperation on digital development, cybersecurity, connectivity, and public service digitisation.
Minister Masiu was accompanied by fellow Members of Parliament in Governor for Sandaun Tony Wouwou, Keith Iduhu [Hiri Koiari], and Middle Ramu MP Kansol Kamdaru, as well as senior officials from the Department of ICT, NICTA, and NBC.
In Canberra, the delegation met with Australian Minister for Communications & Sports Anika Wells and Pat Conroy [Pacific Affairs], along with Brendan Dowling, Australia’s Ambassador for Cyber Affairs and Critical Technology.ac
“The Visit was aimed at deepening bilateral cooperation with Australia in the digital space and related technologies and innovations,” Masiu said in a statement.
A key outcome of the talks was PNG’s proposal for a converged Memorandum of Understanding [MOU] on Digital Development. The MOU seeks to align both countries’ efforts in key areas, including:
- Development of a national digital ID system [SevisPass]
- Cloud migration and cybersecurity operations
- Investment in digital infrastructure and regulatory reform
- Delivery of digital government services
The MOU is also expected to build upon Australia’s existing support through programs like RAPID cyber assistance and satellite initiatives.
While in Sydney, the PNG delegation met with global cloud providers Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Oracle to explore the use of secure, sovereign-compliant cloud platforms for rolling out PNG’s digital government services and AI-enabled citizen platforms.
Another major focus of the visit was securing support for three new undersea cable connections to PNG. These connections, currently under consultation with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade [DFAT] and the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific [AIFFP], are aimed at improving the country’s internet capacity, redundancy, and regional digital integration.
The ICT Minister said these cable projects are critical to digital inclusion and economic growth with funding and implementation discussions ongoing.
Masiu expressed gratitude to the Australian Government and DFAT for supporting the visit and reaffirmed PNG’s readiness to deepen collaboration with Australia and its digital partners.
“We appreciate the warm hospitality and productive engagements. Australia’s continued support plays a vital role in PNG’s digital transformation journey,” he said.