Papua New Guinea officially joined the United Nations on September 10, 1975, just days before its independence on September 16, 1975. PNG became a member of the United Nations through Security Council Resolution 375 and General Assembly Resolution 3368. This marked PNG’s formal entry into global diplomacy and international cooperation.
The first UN presence in PNG was through UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), which began operations shortly after independence. The Prime Minister at the time was Sir Michael Somare, PNG’s founding leader and head of the Pangu Pati.
UNDP played a key role in supporting early nation-building efforts, including governance, education, and health systems.