The IGF delivered a 2-day capacity-building workshop for government officials in Papua New Guinea on the fiscal aspects of model mining development agreements. Increasingly, countries are using model contracts or agreements to provide greater predictability for mining contract negotiations. Typically, the model sets out the baseline legal terms that apply to all qualified investments. This could be a combination of fixed terms (i.e., minimum terms that set a floor for negotiations) and flexible terms (negotiable within limits set by law), with clear eligibility criteria and parameters for review. It is good practice for governments to limit the scope for negotiation as much as possible and instead adhere to the law.
About a dozen government officials from Papua New Guinea’s Internal Revenues Commission, Mineral Resources Authority, Department of Mineral Policy and Geohazards Management, and Department of Treasury attended the workshop.
The IGF and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) also held a 1-day workshop on the OECD/G20 Two Pillar Solution to address the tax challenges arising from the digitalization of the economy. The workshop focused specifically on the economic and legal impact assessment of Pillar Two for Papua New Guinea. Approximately 50 government officials from the Internal Revenues Commission attended.
These workshops were part of a week-long mission to Papua New Guinea that included various training workshops and meetings with the government conducted by the IGF and the OECD.
