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global companies are lining up to extract mineral resources, oil and gas, but the country's complex system of land tenure, it is difficult to pass on the benefits

first two months in office as Minister of Papua New Guinea have seen first having to apply the political damage control more often than you might expect.

There was a clean-up after members of his new look cabinet moved to suspend some provincial governments - including the East Sepik, as the power base of Sir Michael Somare, has launched a legal challenge Resolution of Congress dramatically long deposed Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea and allowed the subsequent vote O'Neill saw his place.

Then O'Neill was busy clarifying the government's position in the first corporate jet. Although this article announced that the luxury time Somare be sold, which was used to transport ministers in the country.

But the biggest drop was in connection with the new Minister of Mines for Byron Chan significantly change the rules of ownership of resources in PNG, so that the traditional owners took control of the State . That sent jitters through investment in the community, especially the mining sector. Thus, in a recent business lunch in Brisbane, where O'Neill addressed the "who's who of mining and investment PNG oil," which sought to reassure them that it would be as usual.

"The rules have not changed. The playing field remains the same and will remain so for the foreseeable future," said O'Neill of the group.

However, the issue of resource ownership continues to dominate the public debate in a country experiencing an unprecedented boom of resources. The biggest development in the course is $ 15 billion of the proposed Exxon Mobil gas field in the remote mountains. The oil giant plans to pump the product through a pipeline of 850 km through several provinces, from 2014.

Peter Graham, CEO of Exxon's subsidiary Esso Highlands Ltd, which manages the project, says Papua New Guinea should benefit from the development. "Some analysts predict a doubling of GDP, I believe that education and health also benefit the communities," said

It sounds promising for a country plagued by a lack of public administration and the systematic corruption, and that seems to miss all the Millennium Development UN, despite growth strong economic in recent years.

Paul Barker, the Institute of National Affairs, a private company funded by reflection, says there is frustration in the community in general by the lack of equity and participation in the project, and the right resources generally. "The frustration not refer so much to exploit their own resources, but in the governance of the benefits of resource extraction."

Barker says the Government of Papua New Guinea has received considerable revenue from the mines for years, although it has little benefit to the provinces and landowners. "People see the resources are extracted, they see the apparent stream of wealth flowing to certain players, but then on the floor you just see the problems."