It’s time MVA enters the 21st century

Check out MVA’s website. Now look at Palau’s, the Marshalls’, the FSM’s or Guam’s. The difference is really unbelievable. These other places have good solid information, photos, and links; in other words, what you’d expect. (Let’s not even think about Hawaii, we cannot even think about being that professional. But can’t MVA get up to Marshallese standards at least?)

MVA’s website has a section on culture, about half a page. Yes, given the history, the impact of other cultures, the traditions, family, the church and on and on and all they know about local culture can be said in half a page.

Golf. All they have to say on that page is said in three sentences. What? People here who have never golfed, never been on a course, think it’s a very odd game if the guy with the lowest score wins, those people know more than three sentence about Saipan golf.

Diving. In about two paragraphs it says there is some World War II stuff under the water near Saipan and some more near Tinian. No kidding, that’s it. There are no photos on the main page, you need to go to another page to even see water.

Events. In October there is a “50km Hell of the Marianas fun ride.” You may ask, what is “fun” about “hell”? You may wonder if this is in cars, on horses, on bikes, or roller skates? None of these questions can be answered without calling a contact number on Saipan. Who in Japan or Korea is going to do that?

The internet is how people check things out, including vacation spots. People also trust and go to official sites. Some hotel can put up anything and rip a tourist off. The official tourist site is the go-to place to get good, reliable information, yet it seems MVA it not able to put up a decent site, thus leaving uninformed potential tourist to go elsewhere for information and vacations, like Guam and Palau.

The NMI has a lot to offer a tourist, yet it seems MVA is guarding our events and activities, not to mention culture and natural beauty, like a government secret. They don’t even list an email address! That’s right, you can’t click on the site and find a way to email questions to the government agency that is meant to reach out to visitors unless you are in Japan or Korea, but even that is not to someone here in the CNMI.

If MVA is here to promote tourism, then it needs people who know the world has changed in the past 20 years and adjustments must be made. Servicing a few travel agencies is not helpful.

The website logo could be but should not be, “Maybe you can find us, but you can’t talk to us, and you’ll never figure out what we have to offer!” Sure, there is no money but the CNMI can’t afford not to at least update the website. A decent website is not expensive. Things are only getting worse for the economy. Tourism needs to be aggressively pursued. If that costs money, then spend money to make money. Getting MVA, its website, and the entire organization into the 21st century is not expensive, its vital.

Jose Hozebee 
Sadog Tasi, Saipan