Spotted In
A PNG geologist in the Philippines
Intimidating, fascinating and mystical is how Papua New Guinea-born geologist Ken Unamba describes one of his favourite past times in the Philippines – swimming with whale sharks.
It’s a big tourist attraction for the town of Oslob, at the southern end of the island of Cebu.
Unamba has been working in the Philippines and living with his family in Cebu, the country’s second-biggest city, for the past eight years. Prior to the Philippines, he worked in Nigeria, after starting out at Porgera Gold Mine and other projects in PNG.
Born in Morobe Province, Unamba was educated at Kulungtufu Community School, Dregerhafen High School and Passam National High School before graduating with a bachelor of science in geology from the University of PNG in 1992.
He describes his first job at Porgera as “very, very exciting”.
“We were producing over one million ounces of gold a year at that time, which is very rare in the world, and I was in the midst of it,” he tells Paradise.
Over the next 10 years, he worked as a senior and then supervising geologist at Tolukuma Gold Mines, Wafi-Golpu Project, and Woodlark mines in Milne Bay.
And then it was to Nigeria, West Africa, for three years where he set up the Segilola Gold Project for Perth-based CGA Mining.
“It was one of the most interesting, challenging and exciting times of my career,” he says.
While still working in Nigeria, a seven-month PNG stint saw him setting up a mechanised alluvial gold mining project with local lease holders and investors in Wau. The project was providing full-time employment for more than 50 locals, until some mechanical issue and funding shortfalls put it on hold.
But the success of the Segilola project saw CGA Mining offer him a role leading an exploration team at the Masbate Gold Mine in the Philippines.
“I’ve been working here for more than eight years now. It’s the longest time I’ve worked for one company in one place, but as the Filipinos say, ‘it’s more fun in the Philippines’.
“My work here has really taught me some lessons about mining and how to take care of the environment as well as local people.
“In the Philippines, the environmental regulations are very stringent. Even the mine run-offs are captured and professionally disposed of in properly engineered dumps.”
Unamba’s wife of 30 years is Jinna Zanggo Unamba, from Qetiqeti village, Finschhafen.
His fly-in, fly-out roster means 20 days on, eight days off, and his time off is spent with his six children. His eldest daughter, Yarrawe Kaiffar, graduated with her commercial pilot’s licence in Queensland in 2015. The others are still in school.
A favourite family activity has been swimming with the massive whale sharks, some having been recorded as long as 12 metres.
“It’s a bit intimidating at first, but quite a fascinating experience when you see these massive giants from just below the surface, like dark mystical-looking shadows gracefully gliding past you with ease and elegance and without creating a ripple on the surface.
“When we last went, there were several huge whale sharks and a couple of young ones which were being fed, and they go around in a big circular pattern about 20 metres off shore.”