Enga Province MoU signing with NCC

MoU Signed to Strengthen Cultural Research and Preservation in Enga Province A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the National Cultural Commission under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, and the Enga Provincial Government on the 29th of May 2026 at the ministry’s office at Level 9 Monian Tower, Downtown Port Moresby. Presenting the event were the Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Hon. Belden Norman Namah; Governor for Enga Province, Sir Peter Ipatas; Executive Director of the National Cultural Commission, Mr. Steven Enomb Kilanda; Provincial Administrator of Enga Province, Mr. Sandis Tsaka; and guests. Before independence, the colonial masters established cultural villages or cultural centers. Since independence, only one province in the country has maintained a cultural center: Enga Province. Minister Namah said, “This marks a very important occasion where NCC is engaging with Provinces through signing an MoU, so that we promote and preserve our art and culture in the provinces. It is important for us as part of our biggest Tourism Product, which is our culture.” Minister Namah thanked Sir Ipatas for his leadership over the last 30 years for preserving the culture of Enga province through the cultural center, and also for promoting the cultural show annually. Minister Namah said, “Enga holds a very unique place in our nation, it is the only one that has kept a cultural center alive since and before independence. “This MoU reflects strong leadership and commitment towards cultural preservation. Enga Province will lead the way in promoting and preserving culture at the provincial level.” He said, “What we are doing now as the ministry is to complement these efforts made by Enga Province by strengthening our cultures, our art, and basically preserving our cultural heritage.” Through this MoU, NCC under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture will work together with the Enga Provincial Government to ensure that we expand cultural research in the province, document Enga heritage, and also support the annual cultural show and other cultural programs in the province. Sir Ipatas said, “For us as a province, it has been one of our main programs to try and maintain our culture basically for the future generations. Your intervention has been a blessing to us. As a province, we have a lot of challenges, but we have not sigh away to keep the Enga cultural center going.” He said, “The Cultural Centre was a gift to all the provinces at the time, and every province was actually given funds to set up all the cultural centres. Our Provincial government initiative is to have a museum, and that is something that we have had at the Enga cultural center. Preserving culture, preserving traditions, but more importantly, the future generations will have access to history. Enga as a province will work hard to preserve culture in the province.” Sir Ipatas expressed his appreciation to Minister Namah and the National Cultural Commission for their commitment towards strengthening cultural preservation efforts in the country. He commended the Ministry and the NCC for working collaboratively with provincial governments to safeguard Papua New Guinea’s cultural heritage and support initiatives that promote culture, identity, and history for future generations.