ID: 1740
Presenting Author: Ichwan Arifin
Session: 654 - Culture's Role in Impact Assessment
Status: pending
PNG is a culturally diverse society. Our LNG project engagement strategies are tailored to suit this diverse social landscape where trust is built over time with consistent face-to-face engagements.
This paper shares experiences from LNG project work in Papua New Guinea, where culture, language and clan identity shape the way community members relate to each other. Working in such diverse social landscape means understanding that engagement is not one-off event. It’s a process consistency and respect.
The context is complex: ~97% of land is under customary ownership, managed through clan structure and traditional authority, often undocumented. Social life is guided by the “wantok system”. Communities are diverse and sometimes divided, coupled with geographic challenges, low-income levels, and limited access to technology make community engagement challenging.
Project faces issues which include navigating multiple clans and sometimes factionalized communities and managing diverse expectations toward projects from job opportunities to meeting public infrastructure needs. An additional issue is managing information in an evolving communication landscape.
To respond, our project established a four-pillar approach: 1st, a community engagement framework rooted in local realities but also aligned with international standards. 2nd, grievance management is in place and managed appropriately and accountably. 3rd, consistent face-to-face interaction - village halls, informal dialogues and focus groups. 4th, empowering “local bridge” through village liaison officers who help translate between company and community worlds.
In the end, technology helps, but it is human presence- listening deeply and sharing stories - remain the strongest bridge and transform engagement into trust.
15 yrs experience in socioeconomic and public & government affairs in a multinational oil & gas company. Specialize in stakeholder engagement, grievance management & sustainable community development.
Coauthor 1: Zillar Miro