Australians wishing to trek across the Kokoda Trail have an expectation they will be safe; campsites/toilets will be hygienic; and they will learn about the military history of the Kokoda campaign.

Their international window to the Kokoda Trail is the Kokoda Track Authority (KTA) website which, for reasons unknown, has not been updated for more than 12 years, since 2012! It is now obsolete and irrelevant with many of the licensed tour companies listed on the site having shut down years ago while others don’t comply with the Investment Promotion Authority (IPA) Act and are therefore illegal.

The following factors paint a depressing picture of the current dysfunctional management of PNGs most popular tourism destination:

  • From the time the Kokoda Track (Special Purpose) Authority (KTA) was established and managed by PNG in 2004, trekker numbers increased by 423% from 1,074 in 2003 to 5,621 in 2008.
  • Since Australian environment officials took control of the KTA under a Joint Agreement in 2008 trekker numbers have plummeted by 42% to 3,308 in 2024.
  • Not a single management protocol has been introduced since then. It is still not possible to book a campsite. There are no due diligence checks in their Kokoda Tour Company licensing system. There are no compliance checks with IPA rules. There is no trek itinerary management plan. No campsite development plan. Not a single hygienic toilet has been built anywhere across the 138 km Trail. No welfare protection for guides and porters. The law of the jungle prevails as groups argue over campsites that do not have the capacity to accommodate them during peak trekking periods.
  • This has resulted in a cumulative loss of some K50 million in foregone wages, campsite fees and local purchases for the village communities Australian has spent some K200 million in aid funding trying to help through their ‘Kokoda Initiative’!
  • The Australian High Commission engaged an American anthropologist with no previous military experience or any qualifications in military history as Australia’s ‘National Military Heritage Advisor’ in PNG under a process that could best be described as shonky.
  • The current CEO of the KTA, Mr. Julius Wargirai, was appointed in an ‘Acting’ capacity in a deal brokered between the Australian High Commission and the Department of Provincial and Local Level Government Affairs (DPLLGA) in 2018.
  • Wargirai, a former DPLLGA Deputy Secretary, did not have any qualifications or experience in commercial business management, pilgrimage tourism, or military heritage.
  •  His appointment has been deemed to be unlawful by the State Solicitor – his continued engagement in an Acting capacity 6 years on is a breach of the Public Service Management Act.
  • During his term, neither he, nor any other TPA or KTA officials, has ever trekked across the Trail with a professional group and have never facilitated a village-based workshop to seek to understand local expectations from pilgrimage  tourism across the Kokoda Trail.
  • Wargirai has also failed to publish an Annual Financial Report since 2018. Nobody has any idea where the K1 million he collects for trek permit fees each year goes. He advised an International Tour Operators forum in Brisbane in November in 2023 that all funds collected from trek permits are now absorbed in administering his office but he gave no details.

Unfortunately nobody knows what Wargari or his staff do in Port Moresby as they have never introduced a single management protocol for the Kokoda Trail – the ‘law of the jungle’ therefore prevails as tour companies are left to fend for themselves durng thei peak trekking periods.

They have also failed to publish financial reports which has led to strong suspicions of corruption within the organisation.

They ceased publishing monthly newsletters 10 years ago, so nobody has any idea what they do or what they spend their time or money on.

Of more concern is the fact they also neglect to do any due diligence checks to ensure prospective Kokoda tour companies are registered with the IPA as a company; that Australian companies are certified as Foreign Enterprises; that they comply with the provisions of the IPA Act; and that they have the knowledge, expertise and the resources to safely lead groups across the 138 km Kokoda Trail.

There are also concerns that some of the illegal companies do not have Public Liability Insurance policies so trekkers may find they do not qualify for medical cover if they were unfortunate enough to suffer a permanent disability as the result of an accident.

Others may find their travel insurance policy could be voided if they choose to trek with a tour company who does not comply with the legal provisions of the IPA Act.

Prospective trekkers are therefore advised to apply the Latin proverb caveat emptor i.e., ‘Let the buyer beware’ when choosing who to trek with until a professional management body is assigned to properly manage the Kokoda Trail.

If any Kokoda tour companies have arranged to have their legal status corrected please advise the KTA and the IPA, or register a comment on this blog article and the following guide will be duly corrected and updated.

The following audit of Licensed Kokoda tour companies has revealed that all but two comply with the IPA Act – the remainder could therefore be deemed as illegal companies.