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The 2018 Regional Development Forums (RDF) was held from March-May, 2018 in Goroka, Kokopo, Madang, and Port Moresby. The Regional Forums were different from all previous Regional Forums because the discussions and resolutions from these Forums were fed directly into the formulation of the PNG Medium Term Development Plan (MTDP) III (2018-2022) drafted by the Department of National Planning and Monitoring (DNPM), under the leadership and guidance of the Minister for National Planning and CIMC Chairman, Hon. Richard Maru, MP.
Over 800 participants representing Government, civil society, private sector, churches, NGOs, CBOs, and interested individuals attended the four Regional Forums and many useful inputs and feedbacks were collected for incorporation to the MTDP III.
The theme for the Forum was "Securing our Future through Inclusive Economic Growth", which is the same theme as the MTDP III. As indicated by the theme, the focus of the MTDP III was to identify key economic impact areas in order to trigger economic growth in the medium term, while focusing on service sectors, like education and health. The objective of these forums was to gauge the views and development priorities of provincial and district stakeholders for the next five years and their alignment to the MTDP III.
The MTDP III was drafted in line with the policy priorities of the Government which are: 1) Economic Growth with a renewed focus on Agriculture and Livestock; 2) Infrastructure; 3) Law and Order; 4) Education and 5) Health and also in synch with the Alotau Accord II. The Forums were attended by Governors, Provincial Administrators, Planners, and CEOs of DDAs of each region to provide their input to the MTDP III.