Daru is the capital of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea and a former Catholic bishopric. Daru town falls under the jurisdiction of Daru Urban LLG .
15-703: The township is entirely located on an island that goes by the same name, which is located near the mouth of the Fly River on the western side of the Gulf, just north of Torres Strait and Far North Queensland in Australia . Daru had a recorded population of 15,142 as of the 2011 census. The language of the Daru people is Kiwai (South-West Coastal Kiwai), also spoken on neighbouring mainland villages (the name Kiwai comes from Kiwai Island some 60 km north-east in
30-512: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Western Province, Papua New Guinea Western Province is a coastal province in southwestern Papua New Guinea , bordering the Indonesian provinces of Highland Papua and South Papua . The provincial capital is Daru . The largest town in the province is Tabubil . Other major settlements are Kiunga , Ningerum , Olsobip and Balimo . The provincial government has, as with
45-470: Is currently operated by Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML). There are three districts in the province. Each district has one or more Local Level Government (LLG) areas. For census purposes, the LLG areas are subdivided into wards and those into census units. The province was governed by a decentralised provincial administration, headed by a Premier, from 1977 to 1995. Following reforms taking effect that year,
60-493: Is one of the Torres Strait Islands . The eponymous town on the island is the capital of the province, and houses the vast majority of the island's population of 20,524 (2009). Daru Island is elliptical in shape, with dimensions of 5.0 by 3.7 kilometers, an area of 14.7 km , and an elevation of up to 27 m. The island is separated from the mainland in the north, specifically the mouth of Oriomo River , by
75-608: The Fly River delta ). However, the Kiwai settlement of Daru is fairly recent. The original inhabitants, the Hiamo, were Western-Central Torres Strait Islanders originally from Yama in the Torres Strait . With the Kiwai colonisations, the main group of Hiamo people moved to Southern Torres Strait and settled the (Inner) Muralag group . Its St. Louis de Montfort Co-Cathedral is the 'second see' (and former 'full' cathedral) of
90-574: The Roman Catholic Diocese of Daru-Kiunga (renamed in 1987, originally Apostolic Prefecture of Daru since 1957, promoted diocese in 1966). It is served by Daru Airport , a small airstrip. Daru has a tropical monsoon climate ( Köppen Am ) with heavy rainfall most of the year and low rainfall from July to October. Daru Island Daru Island is an island in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea . It
105-762: The 2011 census, residing in 31,322 households. Of these, 79,349 people were recorded in Middle Fly District , 62,850 in North Fly District and 59,152 in South Fly District . The average household size across the province was 6.4. The major economic activity in the province is constituted by the Ok Tedi Mine , initially established by BHP and the subject of considerable litigation by traditional landowners both in respect of environmental degradation and disputes over royalties. It
120-496: The 3.5 km wide Daru Roads. The shortest distance to the larger Bristow Island (also called Bobo Island) in the south is 1.3 km. Daru Island is one of the few Torres Strait Islands that do not belong to Australia , but to Papua New Guinea . It is also the most highly populated of the Torres Strait Islands, although scarcely any original Torres Strait Islanders live on the island. The main industry on
135-558: The governments of North Solomons , Chimbu and Northern provinces, sought to change the name of the province. The government uses the name Fly River Provincial Government ; however, this remains unofficial as it has not been changed in the Constitution of Papua New Guinea . Western Province covers 99,300 km² and is the largest province in Papua New Guinea by area. There are several large rivers that run through
150-587: The island in a letter to the PNG Government in April 2020. However, the Government has stated that it has not considered such a proposal, and has no plans to designate the island a 'business, commercial and industrial zone' as the letter proposed. 9°05′10″S 143°12′27″E / 9.08611°S 143.20750°E / -9.08611; 143.20750 This Western Province geography article
165-483: The island is fishing although few fisheries are locally owned. The island has an international airport which is mainly used by Australian aircraft chartered by mining companies for customs clearance or to pick up jet fuel. Commercial flights service Daru Airport four days per week. The first recorded sighting by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of Luís Vaez de Torres on 5 September 1606. The island's airport
SECTION 10
#1732765111091180-581: The province have eucalyptus and melaleuca savannas (the Trans-Fly savanna and grasslands ) that support large populations of birds, wallabies, and introduced deer, with dense rainforests being located to the north. The dry season is from July–November, while the wet season is from December–June. Sago cultivation dominates the wetter north, while yam cultivation dominates the drier south. There were 201,351 inhabitants in Western Province in
195-495: The province, including the Fly River and its tributaries the Strickland and Ok Tedi rivers. The largest lake in Papua New Guinea, Lake Murray , is also in Western Province. This province is the only part of Papua New Guinea to hold land west of the 141°E line, which divides it from Indonesian Western New Guinea . This is a small section of territory bordered by the Fly River . The Tonda Wildlife Management Area in
210-434: The south-western corner of the province is a wetland of international importance. It is the largest protected area in Papua New Guinea. The flora and fauna of much of Western Province resemble those of northern Australia . Flora includes eucalyptus , melaleuca , acacia , and banksias . Fauna includes wallabies , bandicoots , goannas , coastal taipans , and mound-building termites . The drier, southern parts of
225-529: Was used to refuel Allied aircraft during World War II and seaplanes operated from nearby waters. In 2020 the PNG Government signed a memorandum of understanding with the Chinese Fujian Zhonghong Fishery Company which intends to build a "comprehensive multi-functional fishery industrial park" on the island. Another Chinese company, WYW Holding Limited, reportedly proposed building a city to be called "New Daru City" on
#90909