'We cannot be subtly coerced into meekly accepting aid' - Bougainaville leader

The autonomous Papua New Guinea region of Bougainville wants more say over the international aid it gets.

The government is to introduce an Aid Coordination Policy.

It said important development partners such as Australia, New Zealand as well as other development partners and non-governmental organisations enjoy autonomy on how they provide aid in Bougainville.

It said often the priorities of the donor countries and the NGOs are independent of the priorities of the ABG.

Bougainville President Ishmael Toroama said collaboration would mean less duplication of effort and less waste.

He said "a coordinated approach to providing aid by Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and our development partner countries is crucial for maximizing efficiency and impact.

"In defining our destiny, we must understand that Bougainville is geographically located in a position that attracts massive foreign aid motivated by geo-strategic reasons in the Pacific region.

"We find ourselves in a period of our history where we are transitioning between a post-conflict region and political independence as a sovereign nation," he said.

President Toroama said the foreign aid Bougainville receives from donor states, most of whom are within the Asia Pacific Region, "is based on their need to maintain regional stability and address geo-strategic concerns".

"We cannot be subtly coerced into meekly accepting aid that does not reflect our felt needs and aspirations. By doing so we will fall into the neo-colonial trap that disallows us from participating in development," he said.

Toroama said that the new aid coordination policy would not regulate aid completely but better coordinate its implementation to ensure service delivery was effective and met the needs of the people.