On 26 January 2021, H.E. Ambassador Xue Bing met with Western Province Governor Hon. Taboi Awi Yoto of PNG at the Chinese Embassy. The two sides exchanged views on strengthening cooperation in energy, mining, agriculture, forestry, fishery, trade and other fields.
Ambassador Xue said China and PNG are Comprehensive Strategic Partners, and in recent years the bilateral relationship has continued to develop steadily, and is stronger than anytime in history, with deepening mutual political trust and fruitful achievements of exchanges and cooperation in various fields. China will continue to follow the principle of sincerity, real results, amity and good faith and upholding justice while pursuing shared interests, and carry out various forms of friendly exchanges and cooperation with the national and provincial governments of PNG in a wide range of areas, so as to bring tangible benefits to the PNG people, including the people of Western Province.
Governor Yoto said that Western Province is the largest province in PNG, rich in natural resources such as oil, gas, agriculture, forestry and fishery, and has great potential for development. Governor Yoto presented Ambassador Xue with the “Western Province Development Plan 2018-2022” and expressed his hope that the Chinese government could provide aids to Western Province to help it achieve the target tasks in the plan in order to promote economic and social development and improve people's living standards. Governor Yoto also thanked Fujian Zhonghong Fishery Company for its recent plan to invest a fishery industrial park on Daru island in Western Province, he said the project would surely bring practical benefits to the local people, and more Chinese investors are welcome to invest and set up businesses in Western Province in the near future.
Ambassador Xue presented a batch of masks and other PPEs to Governor Yoto as a donation from the Chinese Embassy.