Livestock Development Corporation Reclaims Baiyer Cattle Ranch after 32 years

19th Feb2025:

Visited Baiyer today and was well received by PSC Baiyer Police Station and local leaders including former LDC officers. They did that by also surrendering 8 old LDC owned rundown houses back to us. Stage is set for LDC to re-enter after operations there were shut down in 1992.

March is the month to do that. Minister to officiate. Local MP spoke about it yesterday at an event in Baiyer. A new office space has been allocated for LDC in the new Mul Baiyer Lumusa District Treasury Office. With more than 3000 ha of flat land to be reclaimed for grazing purposes and other projects, we make it happen in 2025

 

Video footage on the left is initial discussions by the former Minister John Simon that progressed to begin early works to reclaim Baiyer Cattle Ranch

Terry Koim, Managing Director

Date: 30th January 2023
Intro: LDC eyes restocking of Baiyer Ranch

The Livestock Development Corporation has its eyes set on restocking the Baiyer cattle Ranch in Western Highlands province later this year says LDC Managing Director Terry Koim.
This comes after the conclusion of a 6-month-long land reclamation and boundary reidentification survey project that was initiated back in 2022.

Mr. Koim, who is currently on site to oversee the final leg of the project on portions 156 and 157, stated that it was first initiated to reclaim state lease lands as directed by Prime Minister James Marape back in 2020.
He said the delay however was caused by many issues including the 2022 NGE, nevertheless the LDC is confident that they will progress this project further and achieve the aim to restock this cattle ranch which has been abandoned for more than 30 years.

He said now that the boundary project is nearing completion, LDC will be looking at rehabilitating the perimeter fence, staff houses, and to erect other ranch infrastructure including solar powered water throughs and stockyard to commence restocking of the ranch.

LDC will be looking to work with local land owner companies, Mul Baiyer Lumusa DDA, and Western Highlands Provincial Government to partner with them in rehabilitating and restocking the ranch so that they take ownership of the business on the land right from the start.
LDC would invite other partners to come on- board in due course. The Title to the land remains under LDC and it would like to give confidence to the government to invite development partners to work with LDC to develop the Baiyer ranch land in the interest of the state.

The MD reiterated that the Baiyer ranch under LDC which covers up to 2900 ha has the potential to supply meat for the upper highland’s region which includes Jiwaka, WHP, Enga, SHP and Hela provinces. The ranch will be redeveloped as the cattle breeding and distribution center for the region, and also make some land available for rice and animal feed production besides other agri-business ventures.
Meantime, Mr. Koim aims to progress the reclamation and restocking of LDC’s other state leased lands throughout the country before going into downstream processing of livestock products per current government policy.

He said LDC is adamant to continue to recoup, rehabilitate and restock state assets and will fully utilize authoritative measures to achieve this; He added that they have already begun evicting illegal settlers on state owned lands and ranches across the country, and will leave no stones unturned to ensure PNG’s food security is protected at all costs.
“I am appealing again to people who are illegally settling on these state-owned lands to vacate the area immediately, and on your own accord. Failure to do so will result in forceful removal or eviction’, he said.
In late 2022, eviction exercises were conducted in some of the major cattle ranches across the country, including Erap in Lae, and the Tiaba abattoir at 12 mile, outside Port Moresby.
Ends…//

Jeremiah Konisimo LDC Goroka operations manager and Xavier Eko, consulting surveyor for LDC.