Publishing in PaPua new guinea – issues and setbacks

Abstract

Elizabeth Turi takes an intimate look at the current state of and reading and publishing in Papua New Guinea. Can a country faced with challenges like a nearly non-existent reading culture and severely limited resources succeed with regards to publishing? Turi thinks yes, but only after Papua New Guineans are helped to reshape their ideas about books and reading. C ontributing to discussions of publishing industries seems so foreign to me at times because I feel totally inadequate, as I can only contribute based on my personal experiences with and knowledge of books. I recall that, during my higher secondary and undergraduate studies in Papua New Guinea, researching for assignments was no easy task. It was almost impossible to get hold of journals and textbooks – let alone literary works – and I sometimes cursed the library and the bookshop for not providing enough books. But I must be pardoned for my ignorance of the issues involved in the lack of book provisions in my country. How was I supposed to know what issues existed? Very little is written about Papua New Guinea within the country, let alone published for all to read. Nevertheless, much has beem written and published about Papua New Guinea from outside of the country. Though local institutions – es-pecially government agencies – publish documents ranging from reports to awareness materials, they are often poorly produced and poorly dis-tributed. Even after 30 years of independence, Papua New Guinea has yet to establish a publishing industry where quality information is published locally and distributed through books, CD or electronic files and where book trade and publishing prevail beyond its borders.