Bank Board Members
The Board of Bank of Papua New Guinea is established under Section 25 of the Central Banking Act 2000 as amended in 2021. The current members of the Bank of PNG Board are:
Mr David Toua, Chairman
Mr Toua was originally appointed to the Board in February 2019 for a term of 3 years as a non-ex officio member. After the CBA amendments he was reappointed for a term of 4 years from 22 December 2021.
Mr Toua is a very experienced business executive with comprehensive management and operational skills. He has served in various senior management executive positions in several corporate organisations.
He is Chairman of ABAC (APEC Business Advisory Council) and the NCD Health Authority.
He is a Board Member of the Business Council of PNG, the Employers Federation of PNG and the Mineral Resources Authority, an Independent Member of the PNG Incentive Fund Strategic Management Group, a Director with Post (PNG) Ltd and New Britain Palm Oil Ltd and an Advisory Board Member of the Royal Port Moresby Golf Club.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts (English Literature, Economics and Government) from the University of Queensland, Australia.
Ms Elizabeth Genia, AAICD
Governor, Bank of Papua New Guinea
Ms Elizabeth Genia has nearly four (4) decades experience with the Bank of Papua New Guinea. Much of that time has been in senior level roles across a wide range of the Bank’s responsibilities, including positions as Head of Internal Audit Department and Financial and Administration Department and the leading supervisory role with the Bank’s strategic planning team.
More recently Ms Genia held the position of Assistant Governor, Corporate Affairs Group, responsible for the critical functions that support the Bank’s overall operation, including strategy and risk management, human resources, corporate services, information and communication technology, facilities and properties management.
Over the course of her career in the Bank, Ms Genia has attained broad business experience in finance, auditing, corporate governance, strategic planning, risk management, administration, policy development, all underpinning her deep knowledge of central banking. As a member of the Bank’s Executive Committee for many years, she has been involved in key decision-making affecting the Bank’s day to day operations as well as future development.
Ms Genia, has built a strong reputation both within PNG and internationally as a thought-leader in financial technology as well as gender equity issues. She is a sought-after guest speaker on these topics.
Her impressive formal qualifications include a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of PNG, a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Queensland, Australia, Graduate Award Certificate in Management and Organisational Change from Australian National University, Canberra and specialised studies sponsored by the Commonwealth Secretariat in Financial Technology and Innovation at Oxford University, United Kingdom.
With a strong commitment to continuous learning and development, Ms Genia is an active member of several professional bodies, including the PNG Business Coalition for Women, for which she held a board position. Other Professional affiliations include: Member PNGID; Member of PNGIA; Member of ILA; Member of PNGHRI; Member of ISACA; Member of AHRI; and Associate Member of AICD.
Ms Genia was appointed by NEC as a/Governor from January – December 2023. The Prime Minister and the PNG National Executive Council on 20 December, 2023 appointed Ms Genia as the first female Governor of the Bank of Papua New Guinea for a term of four (4) years.
Mr Richard Kuna
Mr Richard Kuna was originally appointed an ex officio member of the Board in November 2001 in his capacity as the President of Certified Practising Accountants PNG (CPA PNG).
Following the CBA amendments he was reappointed for a term of 4 years from 22 December 2021. Mr Kuna is a Partner with Kuna Taberia Kiruwi Accountants & Advisors.
He is the President of CPA (PNG), a Member of the Accountants Registration Board of Papua New Guinea and a Director of Wereck Insurance Brokers Ltd.
Mr Kuna holds a Bachelor of Business in Accounting from the University of Technology, Sydney Australia and is a qualified Certified Practising Accountant.
Dr David Kavanamur
Dr David Kavanamur was appointed to the Board on 20 December 2023 for a three year term as a non-ex officio member.
He has over 30 years of professional experience as a public servant at the highest level, and as a highly sought-after strategy consultant. Dr Kavanamur specialises in the development and implementation of national and program level strategy, public sector reform, human capital development, corporate governance, and program design and implementation. He has also performed major international strategic assignments.
A highly respected advisor to government, he wrote Papua New Guinea’s Vision 2050, the 40-year strategic vision and framework for the development of PNG’s current Medium-Term Development Plan III.
Dr Kavanamur is Managing Director of Kumul Consolidated Holdings, the holding company for nine state owned entities. His academic positions include Adjunct Professor at James Cook University’s Cairns Institute, Australia, and Fellow of the Centre for Island Pacific Research and Development, Australian National University.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours (Economics & Public Administration) from the University of Papua New Guinea, a Diploma in Economic Policy Analysis from the PNG National Research Institute, a Master of Philosophy (Development Studies) from the Institute of Development Studies from the University of Sussex, UK, and a Doctor of Philosophy (Strategic Management) from the University of Western Sydney, Australia.
Mr Michael Reddell
Mr Michael Reddell was appointed to the Board on 20 December 2023 for a three year term as a non-ex officio member.
Mr Reddell is a semi-retired economic adviser and a trustee of two New Zealand regulated superannuation schemes. As a highly-respected commentator on central banking and related issues, he is a regular contributor to international publications and also produces the blog www.croakingcassandra.com
Mr Reddell spent most of his career at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in a range of senior management and advisory roles, covering macroeconomics, monetary policy, financial markets, and financial stability and regulation. He also spent time as a Special Adviser on macroeconomic policy matters at the New Zealand Treasury.
Mr Reddell spent two years in the 1980s working for the Bank of Papua New Guinea as a resident economic adviser, and held a similar role at the Bank of Zambia in the 1990s. He later served as Alternate Executive Director on the board of the International Monetary Fund, representing a constituency of 14 Asia-Pacifc countries, including Papua New Guinea, and has been a short-term adviser to a number of developing and emerging country central banks.
Mr Reddell has a Bachelor of Commerce and Administration (Honours) in economics from Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand.