This paper examines the various ways in which migrant settlers have gained and maintained access to land in the informal urban settlements of Wewak, the provincial capital of East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea (PNG). Urban population growth in PNG and in Pacific Island states more generally is predicted to grow rapidly over the next two decades. Given the limited availability of formal housing for lower income people, it is likely that many will live in informal urban settlements on land owned by customary landowners.

The SPR 2015 provides a management record of sector progress over the financial years 2006/07-2014/15, identifying issues arising, as background for an analysis of main challenges for the sector. The LHUD sector challenges suggest that there is need to focus on adjustment of policy and strategic orientation, institution reforms, planning and implementation, and financial performance.

Madam Speaker and Honorable Members, the vision of my Ministry is “Sustainable Land Use, Land Tenure Security, Affordable, Decent Housing and Organized Urban Development”. The Mission is “To ensure sustainable land management, planned urban and rural development and decent housing for all”. The Mandate is “To ensure rational and sustainable use, effective management of land and orderly development of urban and rural areas as well as safe, planned and adequate housing for socio-economic development”.

Madam Speaker and Honorable Members, the vision of my Ministry is “Sustainable Land Use, Land Tenure Security, Affordable, Decent Housing and Organized Urban Development”.

The Mission is “To ensure sustainable land management, planned urban and rural development and decent housing for all”. The Mandate is “To ensure rational and sustainable use, effective management of land and orderly development of urban and rural areas as well as safe, planned and adequate housing for socio-economic development”.

The Ministerial Policy Statement is split in two main sections; Section A, which provides an overview of performance and plans for the Ministry, Central Votes and local governments and Section B, which provides past performance and future plans for each Vote Function in detail, in addition to Cross Cutting and other Budgetary Issues.

• Section A: Ministry and Vote Overview .

The Ministerial Policy Statement is structured by Vote, as follows:

• Vote Overview

This section sets out past performance and future plans for Central and Local Government Votes in more detail. It is structured as follows for each Vote: A Vote Overview sets out key details of the vote, including past performance, future plans and key performance issues to be addressed including costing implications.

• Vote Annexes

The diffusion of supermarkets in developing countries has profound implications – not only for existing retail stores and informal vendors but also for millions of producers and intermediary traders in the respective supply chains, and for consumers in these countries. Overall, societies are likely to gain from retail modernisation, given that it implies the use of new technologies and exploitation of economies of scale, and thus results in higher productivity, increased convenience and lower consumer prices.

The Ministerial Policy Statement is structured by Vote, as follows:

• Staff Establishment Structure Provides details of approved staff structure for each programme and project (including names of staff and vacant posts).

This is clearly demonstrated in the form of an organogram.

Mr. Speaker Sir, my Ministry has four Vote Functions namely; 1: Administration which comprises Programme 01-Finance and Administration, Programme 02- Planning and Quality Assurance and Programme 016-Internal Audit; Vote Function 2: Land Administration and Management which comprises programmes; 03-Office of Director, Land Management, 04-Land Administration, 05-Surveys and Mapping, 06-Land Registration and 07-Land Sector Reform Coordination Unit.

The urban sprawl process of Ulaanbaatar has changed dramatically due to population growth. Ulaanbaatar city land management master plan defined the settlement zone area suitable for living as 33,698 ha. However, due to unrestricted urban sprawl caused by the exponential growth of the city’s population, the settlement zone area reached 39,235 ha, which exceeds the limit by 5537 ha. In order to tackle this issue, several urban planning concepts were developed to be implemented within Ulaanbaatar city urban planning framework.

Most election pledges require a significant budget for their implementation. In the case of a candidate for the head of a local government who presented his pledges related to urban planning by subdividing them into voting districts, we tested how the size of the budget committed to the voters affected the votes. Based on the urban planning-related pledged budget, the economic utility value of one vote was estimated to be about 2050 USD.

Beginning during the colonial period, and greatly accelerating following independence in 1965, Singapore has used land reclamation to increase its national domain by nearly 25 per cent. The construction of new land was a key component of the nation’s celebrated rise from ‘third world’ to ‘first world’ in the postcolonial period. But the economic benefits of remaking Singapore’s coastline came at significant ecological and social costs. Nearly all of the original shore, and its attendant mangrove forests and natural beaches, were lost. So too were two-thirds of Singapore’s coral reefs.