Family-owned business expands operations in PNG to provide quality accounting services to more Papua New Guineans’

Talking from his Port Moresby office in PNG, Edward Uma proudly takes us through the history of Uma & Co and what lies ahead for the 100% nationally owned family business.

Mr & Mrs Uma

With more than 30 years of experience working for large agencies such as Deloitte, Morris & Sonjnocki Charted Accountants as well as banking and financial institutions in PNG, Edward & his wife Gertrude decided to start their own Accounting Firm in 2014. Uma & Co was set up in Port Moresby with the vision of expanding into new provinces throughout PNG in order to provide affordable services at a local level.

After seeing a gap in (the) market for local advisors who help SMES and local indigenous groups with compliance and financial management we decided we wanted to provide those services at a local level.

In starting Uma & Co our aim was, and is, to provide quality services comparable to that of international accounting firms but at an affordable price so it’s easier to access for smaller minority groups,” says Edward Uma, Managing Director and co-owner of Uma & Co.

Managing the business with his wife and Co-Owner, Gertrude, Uma & Co now has six employees and has recently opened their second office in Kimbe.

In July we opened an office in Kimbe so we can meet face-to-face with our clients in this province and build on our reputation,” says Edward.

Having a local presence is very important for our business as many SMEs and landowners want to communicate in person rather than over email or the phone due to confidentiality reasons Edward explains.

In continuing to grow their client base Edward goes on to tell us about the different businesses they work with and what kind of assistance they need.

We work with many different groups in PNG but primarily focus on compliance services and accounting for landowners in the oil & gas industry as well as (the) timbre industry and SMEs in tourism and real estate.

Many of these businesses and local landowners have been severely affected by the global pandemic this year so we have been focusing on compliance in order to assist with funding applications from the bank,” says Edward.

Expanding on their work with local landowners Edward explains the difficulty in getting funding from the banks in the current economic climate.

Many landowners do not have the financial records or technology to prove they have lost income since Covid-19 began so we are working hard with them to set up records and in some cases move to cloud-based software in order to comply with funding applications,” says Edward.

In addition to focusing on compliance work in the current climate, Edward says the business is getting clients to evaluate and diversify their offerings.

Since COVID-19 we have been helping our clients review operational costs as well as sales to see where they can save money and also diversify.

For many, it is about focusing on local business as opposed to international or simply about strengthening relationships with their target market,” says Edward.

When asked what businesses could look at doing to diversify Edward says:

Now is the time to shop local and also travel locally. For businesses in tourism, diversification could look like a reduction in rates on accommodation for domestic travellers and for landowners it could be about connecting with local suppliers to provide goods at a local level.”

Edward goes on to say that they have also been focusing on promoting BLP and the subsidies available for their clients who are looking at working on their accounts and business finances at this time.

BLP has been absolutely essential in helping local SMEs access our services through the general subsidy, which provides up to 50% our fees.

We have really enjoyed being apart of the BLP Network, receiving updates from the organisation and supporting local SMEs to better their future,” he says.

Uma & Co has been apart of the BLP Network since 2018. If you are a small or medium-sized business (between 5 and 50 employees) in PNG and would like to connect with Uma & Co through the BLP programme and/or check if your business is eligible for the BLP subsidy contact: Gertrude Uma (Director)/Approved BLP Advisor here