Papua New Guinea has officially been voted in as a new member country of the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association (ITA) during the World Tunnel Congress (WTC2025) in Sweden.
Representatives from 80 member countries have gathered for the congress, where 46 nations voted in favour of Papua New Guinea’s membership.
The Papua New Guinea says the membership comes as the country embarks on transformative infrastructure projects under the Connect PNG Programme, including plans to establish railway systems that require tunnelling through mountainous terrain.
“This membership is not just a win for PNG – it is a strategic step towards embracing global engineering standards and preparing our nation for the next 50 years of advanced transport infrastructure,” said a PNG delegate at the congress.
WTC2025 is taking place in Stockholm this week.
