Central Province (Papua New Guinea)

Central Province is a province in Papua New Guinea located on the southern coast of the country. It has a population of 237,016 (2010 census) people and is 29,998 square kilometres (11,582 sq mi) in size. The seat of government of Central Province, which is located within the National Capital District outside the province, is the Port Moresby suburb of Konedobu. On 9 October 2007, the Central Province government announced plans to build a new provincial capital city at Bautama, which lies within Central Province near Port Moresby,^[1] although there has been little progress in constructing it.^[2]

Whereas Tok Pisin is the main lingua franca in all Papua New Guinean towns, in part of the southern mainland coastal area centred on Central Province, Hiri Motu is a stronger lingua franca (but not in Port Moresby).

Central Province
Flag
Central Province in Papua New Guinea
Coordinates: 9°30′S 147°40′E / 9.500°S 147.667°E
Country	Papua New Guinea
Capital	Port Moresby
Districts	List Abau District Goilala District Kairuku-Hiri District Rigo District
Government
• Governor	Kila Haoda 2012-
Area
• Total	29,998 km2 (11,582 sq mi)
Population (2011 census)
• Total	269,756
• Density	9.0/km2 (23/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+10 (AEST)

Districts and LLGs

Each province in Papua New Guinea has one or more districts, and each district has one or more Local Level Government (LLG) areas. For census purposes, the LLG areas are subdivided into wards and those into census units.^[3]

District	District Capital	LLG Name
Abau District	Abau	Amazon Bay Rural
		Aroma Rural
		Cloudy Bay Rural
Goilala District	Tapini	Guari Rural
		Tapini Rural
		Woitape Rural
Kairuku-Hiri District	Bereina	Hiri Rural
		Kairuku Rural
		Koiari Rural
		Mekeo Kuni Rural
Rigo District	Kwikila	Rigo Central Rural
		Rigo Coastal Rural
		Rigo Inland Rural

Provincial leaders

The province was governed by a decentralised provincial administration, headed by a Premier, from 1976 to 1995. Following reforms taking effect that year, the national government reassumed some powers, and the role of Premier was replaced by a position of Governor, to be held by the winner of the province-wide seat in the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea.^[4][5]

Premiers (1976–1995)

Premier	Term
Gau Heno	1976–1978
Rina Nau	1978–1982
Kone Vanuawaru	1983
Reuben Taureka	1983–1984
Kone Vanuawaru	1984–1987
Emmanuel Ume	1988–1991
Isaiah Oda	1991–1993
Paul Kipo	1993–1995

Governors (1995–present)

Premier	Term
John Orea	1995–1997
Ted Diro	1997–1999
Ajax Bia	1999
Opa Taureka	1999–2002
Alphonse Moroi	2002–2012
Kila Haoda	2012–2017
Robert Agarobe	2017-

Members of the National Parliament

The province and each district is represented by a Member of the National Parliament. There is one provincial electorate and each district is an open electorate.

Premier	Term
Central Provincial	Robert Agarobe
Abau Open	Puka Temu
Goilala Open	William Samb
Kairuku-Hiri Open	Peter Isoaimo
Rigo Open	Lekwa Gure

Sources/further reading

• Hanson, L.W., Allen, B.J., Bourke, R.M. and McCarthy, T.J. (2001). Papua New Guinea Rural Development Handbook. Land Management Group, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, The Australian National University, Canberra. Available as a 30 Megabyte PDF.

References

1. ^ "K300m Central capital to emerge at Bautama". The National. 9 October 2007.
2. ^ Pascoe, Noel (20 August 2010). "Donor agencies to fund hospital". PNG Post-Courier. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
3. ^ National Statistical Office of Papua New Guinea
4. ^ May, R. J. "8. Decentralisation: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back". State and society in Papua New Guinea: the first twenty-five years. Australian National University. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
5. ^ "Provinces". rulers.org. Retrieved 31 March 2017.

Abau District

Abau District is a district of Central Province in Papua New Guinea. It is one of the four administrative districts that make up the province.

Bina language (Papua New Guinea)

Bina is an extinct Austronesian language of Papua New Guinea. It was restructured through contact with neighboring Papuan languages, and it turn influencing them, before speakers shifted to those languages.

Keapara language

Keapara is an Austronesian language of Papua New Guinea. It has been strongly influenced by Papuan languages.

Kuni language

Kuni is a Malayo-Polynesian languages of the central southern coast of the Papuan Peninsula in Papua New Guinea.

Lala language (Papua New Guinea)

Lala, also rendered Nara, is a Malayo-Polynesian languages of the central southern coast of the Papuan Peninsula in Papua New Guinea.

Laua language

Laua, also known as Labu, is a language of Papua New Guinea. It is (or was) spoken in the Central Province, north and west of Laua according to Ethnologue. Laua had only one remaining speaker in 1987, and is now extinct.

Magori language

Magori is a nearly extinct Austronesian language of Papua New Guinea that has been strongly restructured through contact with neighboring Papuan languages, perhaps Mailu, which the Magori people speak fluently today. The restructuring was so extensive that Magori's family was long in doubt; it was finally established by Dutton in 1976. Magi in turn borrowed large numbers of Austronesian words, either from Magori or its extinct Oumic relatives.

Mailu Island

Mailu Island is a small, 1.8 km long, island in Central Province, Papua New Guinea. It lies 250 km ESE from Port Moresby.

Mailu language

Mailu, or Magi (Magɨ), is a Papuan language of Papua New Guinea.

Magi is a non-Austronesian language spoken by upwards of 6000 people living on the islands of Mailu, Laluoru, Loupomu and Eunuoro and along the south coast between Cape Rodney and mid-Orangerie Bay of the Central Province of Papua New Guinea. It is often referred to as 'Mailu' as one of the major villages speaking this language is the village of that name on Mailu Island. It is related to the other languages of the Mailuan family (Ma, Laua, Morawa, Neme'a, Domu and Bauwaki whose speakers live or lived inland of this area). Ma and Laua are now extinct.

Magi speakers have for a long time had close contacts and (probably extensive) integration with Austronesian speakers, with the result that there has been a significant adoption of Austronesian vocabulary (around 30–40%, particularly Magori, Gadaisu, Suau, Ouma, Yoba and Bina, of which the last three are now extinct).

Magi itself is divided into two main groups of dialects: the eastern (Maisi/Varo) dialects, and the western (Island) dialects.

Maria language (Papua New Guinea)

Maria is a Manubaran language spoken in the "bird's tail" of Papua New Guinea by approximately 1,350 people.

Motu language

Motu (sometimes called Pure Motu or True Motu to distinguish it from Hiri Motu) is one of many Central Papuan Tip languages and is spoken by the Motuans, native inhabitants of Papua New Guinea. It is commonly used today in the region, particularly around the capital, Port Moresby.

A simplified form of Motu developed as a trade language in the Papuan region, in the southeast of the main island of New Guinea, originally known as Police Motu, and today known as Hiri Motu. After Tok Pisin and English, Hiri Motu was at the time of independence the third most commonly spoken of the more than 800 languages of Papua New Guinea, although its use has been declining for some years, mainly in favour of Tok Pisin.

Motu is classified as one of the Malayo-Polynesian languages and bears some linguistic similarities to Polynesian and Micronesian languages.

Ouma language

Ouma is an extinct Austronesian language of Papua New Guinea. It was restructured through contact with neighboring Papuan languages, and it turn influencing them, before speakers shifted to those languages.

Sinaugoro language

Sinaugoro is an Austronesian language of Papua New Guinea. It is closely related to Motu.

Tauade language

Tauade is a Papuan language of New Guinea.

Toura language (Papua New Guinea)

Toura (Doura) is a Malayo-Polynesian languages of the central southern coast of the Papuan Peninsula in Papua New Guinea.

Waima language

The Waima language (sometimes known as Roro, though this is strictly the name of one dialect of Waima) is a Nuclear West Central Papuan Tip language of the Oceanic group of Malayo-Polynesian languages, spoken in Papua New Guinea by 15,000 people. The three dialects, Waima, Roro, and Paitana, are very close.

Yoba language

Yoba is an extinct Austronesian language of Papua New Guinea. It was restructured through contact with neighboring Papuan languages, and in turn influencing them, before speakers shifted to those languages.

Yule Island

Yule Island is a small island in Central Province, Papua New Guinea. It lies 160 km from Port Moresby.