These are some of the extracts from that report:

 

 

Lihir continued to invest in community services and education and health infrastructure. Working under agreement with the 15 local government wards and affected area landowners, Lihir further invested in village development schemes, providing housing, power, water supply, garbage and sewage systems. 

 

A total of 78 houses were completed, and a community hall was upgraded. Additionally, 288 houses had solar lighting installed, and 68 solar street lighting kits were installed in villages. Two new water supply projects and one extended water supply project were also completed.

 

Working in partnership with Nimamar Local-Level Government (NLLG), the Lihir operation has completed the renovation and upgrade of nine aid posts and two community health centres across the Lihir Group of Islands. These facilities will provide much needed support to communities in the event of a further Covid-19 outbreak and will reduce pressure on Lihir's medical centre.

 

Through the Newcrest subsidiary, Lihir Gold Ltd, the company contributed $591,386 towards refurbishing Lihir's 11 health facilities and $843,771 on procuring electrical and communication equipment for the facilities.

 

Newcrest also delivered $173,981 worth of medical supplies to ensure the health facilities were equipped to respond to a Covid-19 outbreak in the communities of Lihir. 

 

These projects were funded under Newcrest's Community Support Fund (CSF), established in April 2020 to help Newcrest's host communities respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. The medical supplies include pharmaceutical items, diagnostic items, consumables, airways and breathing apparatus, and personal protective equipment (PPE). 

 

The NLLG is distributing the supplies to all 11 health facilities.

 

These facilities are Putput, Lataul, Samo, Mazuz, Banam, Olekowa, Malie, Ton and Mahur aid posts, and Masahet and Palie health centres. 

 

Newcrest's community relations superintendent Conrad Akope said the delivery of the medical supplies signified Newcrest's strong relationship with community stakeholders and ongoing collaboration with the Lihir Joint Stakeholder Committee (JSC). 

 

The JSC was formed in March 2020 to identify critical needs in Lihir during the Covid-19 pandemic and address the needs through various projects such as the procurement of medical supplies. 

 

Nimamar Local Level Government's health manager Gorettie Kaven thanked Newcrest for the timely handover of the medical supplies, adding "they will go a long way in serving the people, especially in the outer islands".

 

 

Despite Covid-19, the project continued to support the ‘Wafi-Golpu Joint Venture Mining Chocolate' program in partnership with the PNG Cocoa Board to build more economically resilient communities in the project area.

 

The program was expanded to cover more areas including Huon Gulf coastal communities. 

 

Local employment and business opportunities related to the project are affected by delays in the project permitting process and ever-changing Covid-19 restrictions.

 

The JV managed to maintain a project area stakeholder engagement program in a Covid-safe manner with respect to discussing critical issues such as Covid-19 awareness, proposed deep-sea tailings placement and the grant of the environment permit by the PNG Government

 

 

As a major initiative of the Community Support Fund, Newcrest is supporting the roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine across New Ireland Province through our commitment of $1.9 million to UNICEF. 

 

Having established the CSF in April 2020, in response to the impact of COVID-19 in our host communities, we've delivered some incredible outcomes over the last 12 months. Our attention has now turned to the roll-out of COVID-19 vaccinations in New Ireland.

 

UNICEF is working with the New Ireland Provincial Health Authority and Australian Doctors International to provide the necessary training to health workers, and to provide communication and education material for awareness campaigns and logistical support for the administration of the vaccine. "Newcrest supports the people of Papua New Guinea in this most challenging of times," said Newcrest 

 

MD and CEO Sandeep Biswas. "The vaccine roll-out in New Ireland reinforces our long-term commitment to our host communities and to the health and safety of the people of Papua New Guinea." 

 

Together with an additional estimated $216,543 in in-kind logistics support for the provincial roll-out, this is the largest contribution from a private company for vaccine deployment in PNG.

 

The full report may be found at this address: https://bit.ly/3w9SwiF