Roving Kramer Ausenco Ambassador, Mal Meninga and his rugby league Kangaroo team were a big hit in Lae City in Morobe Province when they visited Papua New Guinea. Mal was the coach of the young Kangaroo’s team who were members of the Australian Prime Minister’s 13 that played against the PNG Prime Minister’s 13 on Sunday, 25th September 2011 at the Lae Rugby League Oval.
The key theme of this event was to promote a national campaign to “Stop Violence Against Women” a major social problem in the local communities. The football match is an annual event which was initiated in 1995 by the then Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard and the former Prime Minister of PNG, Sir Michael Somare. The Kangaroo’s are supported and funded by AusAID.
Mal has been the Kangaroo coach since the inception of this concept and was the guest of honour at the Kramer Ausenco cocktail held at the Lae International Hotel to coincide with the football match. The Kramer Ausenco team was led by CEO Frank Kramer and Bruce Nicolson, COO.
A number of important guests attended and mingled with Mal and the Kramer Ausenco team. They included dignitaries like the Honourable Bart Philemon, MP for Lae City and the Minister for Public Service in the O’Neill Government; Sir Nagora Bogan, Chairman of the Nambawan Super Limited; Kemas Tumala, Administrator of Morobe Province; David Wissink, General Manager Sustainability & External Relations for Morobe Mining Joint Venture, the developers of the huge Wafi gold and copper prospect; Paul Yanam, President of the Yanta Landowners Association and Nawae Boga, Leader of the Buabwarf Landowner’s Association that own the land where Wafi mine is being developed.