About Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea or the Independent State of Papua New Guinea is a country located in Oceania; which is the name given to a group of islands located between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean, east of Indonesia. The capital city of Papua New Guinea is Port Moresby. The country of Papua New Guinea or PNG consists of mainland and about 600 islands. In size it is almost as big as Thailand. It has mountainous ranges, tropical rainforests, active volcanoes, and rivers such as Sepik and Fly.

In 1885, the eastern half of New Guinea was divided between Germany and UK. In 1902, the UK controlled area came under Australia and during World War I; the remaining area also came to be under Australia. In 1975, Papua New Guinea gained independence from Australia and came under the Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as its Head of State. Today, PNG can be said to have the last of the Cave people in the world. You can actually find some men who remember when was the first time they ever saw metal. At the same time, there is a lot of modernity, everyone has seen Hollywood movies, so in all, PNG presents a very huge paradox.

The country of Papua New Guinea enjoys tropical climate, and agriculture is the main occupation here. The Highlands, a valley region in PNG, enjoy cool temperatures.

When it comes to demographics, Papua New Guinea has a heterogeneous population. Majority of population comprises of indigenous ethnic groups called Papuans. Most of these tribes do not have contact with the outside world. Apart from the Papuans, Austronesians, and other people from across the world who have settled in Papua New Guinea such as the Europeans, Chinese and Australians constitute Papua New Guinea’s population. The country has 820 different languages however the official languages are only 3, they are English, Tok Pisin and Hiri Motu. 96% of Papua New Guineans are Christians, however majority of these are followers of traditional indigenous practices as well. Majority of Papua New Guinea citizens are illiterate, especially women.

The people of Papua New Guinea give a lot of importance to Sports. Rugby League of this country is quite famous, apart from this football and cricket are popular. Varied topography and seclusion has resulted in PNG becoming an interesting spot for adventure tourism in the world. Eastern highlands region is famous for its gold mines and coffee plantations, infact Goroka, a pleasant town in this area is the coffee center of the country. Port Moresby, the capital city has zoological gardens and museums. Madang is a city where you can see splendid flights of bats at night. Vanimo is a popular surfing destination and by visiting Wewak, you can acquaint yourself with the Sepik river and Sepik culture. Kokoda track and Louisiade Archipelago are some more breathtaking attractions at Papua New Guinea.