Australia and Papua New Guinea have signed a new framework covering telecommunications and digital government, bringing earlier cyber and information-technology arrangements under one memorandum of understanding. Signed on 20 October and announced by Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on 21 October, it sets out cooperation aimed at improving connectivity and public services in PNG.
The published memorandum expressly says it is not intended to create legally binding rights or obligations under domestic or international law. It does not announce a funding total, a consumer tariff reduction or a date by which a particular network project will be delivered. Its immediate purpose is to organise government cooperation, with operational work to be jointly determined.
According to the DFAT announcement, the signatories were Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Minister for Pacific Island Affairs Pat Conroy, together with PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko and Information and Communications Technology Minister Robert Naguri. The announcement describes a partnership extending beyond telecom infrastructure to online safety and emerging technologies.
Earlier arrangements brought under one framework
The text supersedes the bilateral cyber-cooperation memorandum signed on 30 March 2022 and updated in 2023, as well as the information and communications technology memorandum signed on 8 December 2023. It also supersedes other arrangements between the two governments covering the same subject matter. That consolidation is separate from the creation of an enforceable obligation to build or finance a named project.
The memorandum sits under the countries' 1999 Treaty on Development Cooperation. It says activities undertaken through the new framework remain subject to that treaty and its annex, with the treaty taking precedence if there is an inconsistency. The document therefore distinguishes the new non-binding understanding from the existing treaty framework within which activities would take place.
DFAT will lead Australia's involvement, while PNG's Department of Information and Communications Technology will lead on its side. The participating bodies also include Australia's Digital Transformation Agency and PNG's National ICT Authority. Defence and foreign-affairs agencies are among those listed, reflecting the document's coverage of both service delivery and the security of digital infrastructure.
Connectivity and government services are stated objectives
The memorandum identifies affordable, secure and resilient connectivity as an objective consistent with PNG's priorities. It refers specifically to the country's Digital Government Act 2022 and the National ICT Authority's regulatory responsibilities. These references establish the policy setting for cooperation; they do not announce amendments to either country's existing legislation.
For public services, the text envisages cooperation on digital-government initiatives intended to improve accessibility and efficiency. It separately covers protection of critical infrastructure and sensitive information, with attention to sovereign controls over essential systems and data. Cybersecurity capability and measures against malicious cyber activity form part of that proposed work.
The governments also intend to support policy and regulatory development for a competitive digital economy and safer online activity. Training and information exchange can cover the economic and security implications of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence and cloud computing. The memorandum does not set technical standards for those technologies or create a new approval process for private companies.
Work plans and twice-yearly reviews come next
Implementation may involve jointly determined work plans, technical advisers and infrastructure support. The document also allows secondments, exchanges and targeted capability-building activities. Either government can propose a subsidiary arrangement in writing, and the two sides can update such arrangements by mutual written consent without amending the overarching memorandum.
Senior officials are intended to meet twice a year using existing bilateral visits and exchanges. Those discussions would review progress and implementation difficulties, consider further cooperation and assess work against jointly agreed priorities. Subsidiary arrangements, like the memorandum itself, are expressly not intended to create legally binding rights or obligations.
The memorandum starts from signature and continues unless either government gives six months' written notice of termination. Differences over its interpretation or implementation are to be handled through consultation, rather than referred to a national or international tribunal. For readers following PNG's connectivity plans, the next concrete detail to watch is the operational work agreed under the framework, not an assumed rollout or price promise.
Related international coverage: the UK’s proposed undersea infrastructure laws and the UK-Oman cooperation statement.
Adapted from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website under CC BY 4.0.
