A state of emergency has been declared in Papua New Guinea by Prime Minister James Marape, after at least 16 people died in violent riots on Wednesday, that left shops and businesses burned and looted.

The prime minister announced the measure would last for 14 days, with 1,000 defence personnel on standby to react to any escalation in violence. 

The ABC reported  that nine people have died in the country's capital of Port Moresby while a further seven were killed in Lae, PNG's second largest city, according to an update from Lae Metro Command on Thursday.

Local security services described the rioting on Wednesday night as total anarchy.

Videos of the unrest show warehouses engulfed in flames and large crowds of people engaging in looting and rioting.

It was widely reported that the riots were sparked by a police strike on Wednesday, when police, defence and other public servants held a demonstration at Parliament House over a payroll issue.

Police officers stood down at 10am local time as part of the action.

But it soon escalated into a dramatic security situation as hundreds of residents took advantage of police being off duty to flood the streets, setting shops and businesses in the capital alight.

The civil unrest in the capital appeared to spread to other parts of the country, with Mr Marape acknowledging that it was "unfortunate that other centres are trying to copy what happened in Port Moresby".

It was reported that the political opposition has also been working on a motion to hold a vote of no confidence in Mr Marape, scheduled for February.