A joint engineering exercise in Lae has provided a practical demonstration of the expanding Australia-Papua New Guinea partnership, combining infrastructure delivery, technical skills and regional cooperation as economic ties between the two countries continue to deepen.
Papua New Guinean and Australian military engineers have completed another phase of Exercise Puk Puk, the long-running joint engineering program that combines practical infrastructure work with training and skills development.
Exercise Puk Puk 2026 ran from July through September at Igam Barracks in Lae and brought together personnel from the Papua New Guinea Defence Force and Australian Defence Force, with participation from New Zealand and Fiji.
Engineering teams worked on road construction, buildings and facility upgrades while undertaking practical training designed to strengthen engineering capability and professional links between the participating forces.
The exercise has operated for more than 20 years and is one of several practical programs underpinning the wider Australia-Papua New Guinea relationship.
That relationship now extends well beyond defence cooperation. Australia describes Papua New Guinea as its largest development partner and is expanding investment across infrastructure, education, health, labour mobility, economic reform and institutional capacity.
The Australia-Papua New Guinea Development Partnership Plan 2024-2029 includes increased investment in economic and social infrastructure, expansion of education funding, greater labour mobility opportunities and efforts to make travel between the two countries easier.
Infrastructure investment is rising from around A$200 million to more than A$250 million annually, while Australia has committed more than A$1 billion in concessional finance and grants for Papua New Guinea infrastructure through the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific.
The commercial relationship is also substantial. Australian companies have long been active across Papua New Guinea’s resources, banking, professional services, construction, transport, retail and infrastructure sectors, making the bilateral relationship important to businesses on both sides.
The two countries’ partnership has also been elevated through the Papua New Guinea-Australia Mutual Defence Treaty, alongside the existing Comprehensive Strategic and Economic Partnership and Bilateral Security Agreement.
Against this broader backdrop, Exercise Puk Puk provides a tangible example of cooperation on the ground: improving infrastructure while building engineering skills, strengthening institutional relationships and demonstrating the practical dimension of an increasingly broad Australia-Papua New Guinea partnership.
Main picture courtesy: Australian Consulate General, Lae.
