Chimbu, more frequently spelled Simbu, is a province in the

Highlands Region Highlands Region is one of four regions of Papua New Guinea. Subdivision The Region is administratively divided into seven provinces: * Chimbu (Simbu) *Eastern Highlands * Enga *Hela * Jiwaka * Southern Highlands * Western Highlands See also * ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

. The province has an area of 6,112 km² and a population of 376,473 (2011 census). The capital of the province is Kundiawa.

Mount Wilhelm Mount Wilhelm (german: Wilhelmsberg) is the highest mountain in Papua New Guinea at . It is part of the Bismarck Range and the peak is the point where three provinces, Chimbu, Jiwaka and Madang, meet. The peak is also known as ''Enduwa Kombugl ...

, the tallest mountain in Papua New Guinea, is on the border of Simbu.

Geography

Chimbu is located in the central highlands

cordillera A cordillera is an extensive chain and/or network system of mountain ranges, such as those in the west coast of the Americas. The term is borrowed from Spanish, where the word comes from , a diminutive of ('rope'). The term is most commonly us ...

of Papua New Guinea. It shares geographic and political boundaries with five provinces: Jiwaka,

Eastern Highlands :''"Eastern Highlands" also refers to Eastern Highlands Province in Papua New Guinea, and part of the Great Dividing Range, Australia.'' The Eastern Highlands, also known as the Manica Highlands, is a mountain range on the border of Zimbabw ...

, Southern Highlands,

Gulf A gulf is a large inlet from the ocean into the landmass, typically with a narrower opening than a bay, but that is not observable in all geographic areas so named. The term gulf was traditionally used for large highly-indented navigable bodie ...

and Madang. It is a significant source of organically produced

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. Seeds of ...

. Chimbu is a province with limited natural resources and very rugged mountainous terrain. The economic progress of the province has been slower than some other highlands provinces.

Education

There are seven secondary schools in the province: Kondiu Rosary, Yauwe Moses, Kerowagi, Muaina, Gumine, Mt Willem and Kundiawa Day Secondary School. The province also has many high and primary schools.

Districts and LLGs

The province is subdivided into six

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

, with each district further subdivided into 18 rural LLGs and 2 urban LLGs areas. Each of the RLLGs are headed by a President and Urban LLG by a Mayor. Each LLGs have various council wards represented by a councillor who sits in the Council Assembly. All the councillors are democratically elected and Presidents are elected in the Council Assembly. For

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

purposes, the LLG areas are again subdivided into wards and those into census units.

Political governance and administration

Chimbu provincial leaders

The province was governed by a decentralised provincial administration, headed by a Premier, from 1977 to 1995. Following reforms taking effect that year, the national government reassumed some powers, and the role of Premier was replaced by a position of Governor, to be held by the winner of the province-wide seat in the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea.

Premiers (1976–1995)

Governors (1995–present)

Members of the National Parliament

The province and each district is represented by a Member of the National Parliament. There is one provincial

electorate Electorate may refer to: * The people who are eligible to vote in an election, especially their number e.g. the term ''size of (the) electorate'' * The dominion of a Prince-elector in the Holy Roman Empire until 1806 * An electoral district or c ...

and each district is a local ("Open") electorate.

References

* Deck, D
Sipu-u-u-u to Simbu
''Paradise Magazine'' {{Authority control Provinces of Papua New Guinea Highlands Region