West Sepik leads PNG’s digital governance resolution with bilum platform

West Sepik Province has positioned itself at the forefront of Papua New Guinea’s digital governance revolution by officially joining the Department of Implementation and Rural Development’s [DIRD] Bilum Digital Platform.

Provincial Administrator Jacob Areman launched it in Vanimo, as a critical step forward in modernising government operations and enhancing transparency across the province.

“I am a Monitoring and Evaluation man, and that’s my area. My officers and I stand ready to carry the Bilum program forward,” Areman said.

He said Bilum is a vital tool for tracking project delivery and expenditure.

Developed to replace PNG’s unsustainable excel-based reporting system, the Bilum Digital Platform was co-funded with support from Australia’s DFAT under the BCEP program.

“Bilum was born out of our struggle to manage overwhelming volumes of Service Improvement Program reports from 22 provinces and 118 electorates,” DIRD Deputy Secretary for Program Implementation, Gordon Wafimbi said.

West Sepik, alongside Milne Bay and East New Britain, is among the first provinces selected for Bilum onboarding.

Nuku District is currently serving as a pilot, already reporting through the platform. District Administrator Paul Neggai praised the platform’s impact, as Nuku’s 2020–2022 SIP Implementation reports have been successfully submitted and published online, with 2024 reports set for publication by November and 2025 reports being finalized this week.

Designed to digitise and streamline PSIP, DSIP, and LLGSIP reporting, Bilum allows real-time tracking of project implementation, financial flows, and performance indicators. The onboarding in West Sepik mirrors similar initiatives in Milne Bay and ENB, and is conducted in partnership with provincial administrations, district development authorities, and local-level governments.

This bold move is part of DIRD’s broader strategy to strengthen institutional coordination, data integrity, and development impact across PNG’s rural regions, promising a new era of accountability and efficiency in public service.