Summary of publication
This case study examines the role of the Christian churches as institutional actors within Papua New Guinea's governance and service delivery landscape.
The community of Christian churches in Papua New Guinea (PNG) is very diverse with an estimated 99% of the PNG population identifying themselves as Christians. There is a widespread recognition that the churches play a very important role in PNG society. However, there are some who believe that religious organisations have also contributed to the decline of PNG's traditional cultural practices and values.
This report observes that some of the church activities in PNG are well structured and incorporated into change strategies of individual organisations or networks. However, there are also many contributions to improved governance that have emerged out of individual initiatives of church leaders, church-based NGO representatives and academics, which are not as well coordinated, and are often ad hoc or responsive.
The report concludes that given the historical and ongoing involvement of the churches in so many spheres it is difficult to imagine PNG society without them. Despite their broad presence and strengths though, there is a risk of overestimating their potential to play a greater role in supporting improved governance and public performance in the country.
The authors conclude that their future engagement on such matters should be considered objectively in light of various considerations, including the diversity of the church community, the breadth of their current mandates, their absorptive capacity, and the churches' own internal management and governance capabilities.