1 Apr 2006
Tim Anderson. In discussing the economic value of customary land in Papua New Guinea, we must recognise the ongoing polemic over land use. Much of this debate is driven by special interest groups seeking access to customary land. Customary landowners in Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, have been mostly well served by their system of custodianship. Land has been the basis for social cohesion, food security, cultural reproduction and ecological management. This is a view supported by the PNG constitution and reflected, in many ways, by the international discussion of the ‘multifunctionalty’ of small farming (Mazoyer 2001).
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