The design for the national Bahá'í House of Worship of Papua New Guinea (PNG) was unveiled.
• Originally from New Zealand, Rodney Hancock—one of two individuals who brought the Bahá'í Faith to PNG in the 1950s—was asked to unveil the temple design before the audience of over 300 visitors.
• The architectural team—composed of indigenous architect from PNG Henry Lape and Saeed Granfar—also addressed the audience. They explained that the "search for a universal theme" for the temple was "a profound challenge in a country with more than 700 distinct cultural groups.
• The central edifice of the House of Worship will have a seating capacity of 350. [BWNS1246, EMTV.com 3 April, 2018]
• Concept photo's.
• From the website of the department of External Affairs for the Bahá'ís of Papua New Guinea.

Progress Report on the construction of the national Bahá'í House of Worship for Papua New Guinea the first Mashriqul-Adhkár to be designated as a national Temple.
• The House of Worship will be situated on a hilltop in the country's sprawling capital city, Port Moresby. It will be located on the same property as the Bahá'í community's national offices and will include gardens and other meditative spaces. The central edifice will have nine gabled-roof entrances made of timber.
• After receiving formal approval to commence construction from National Capital District's building board in August, the excavation work began. At the time of the report, the Temple's foundation was being laid and it was expected to be complete by December. Work on the steel superstructure was scheduled to begin in January.
• Slideshow. Mashriqul-Adhkar

The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Papua New Guinea issued a statement through its External Affairs department entitled Forging a Path to Gender Equality in response to a series of tragic events and a situation that intensified during the pandemic. [BWNS1439]
• Statement on the External Affairs website.

The Bahá'í World News Service released a progress report on the construction of the Mashriqul-Adhkar in Port Moresby.

After the laying of the foundations which was completed last December, work progressed on an intricate steel structure for the central edifice that traces the unique weaving pattern of the exterior. An innovative design for the steel dome, devised by Werkstudio, an engineering firm based in Germany and Poland, will provide the required strength with an economical use of material.

The structural system will interfaces with the nine entrance canopies that provide lateral strength to the temple. This system, parts of which are nearing completion, will eventually support a steel dome mesh that will at its apex reach a height of approximately 16 meters above floor level.

Designs were being finalized for wood panels that will adorn the entrances of the temple, using local timber. Planning is also under way for gardens that will surround the central edifice.

• Photos.
• Video.
• Facebook page.

The progress on the construction work can be see in the gallery of pictures on the BWNS website. [BWNS1617]