Developing the CNMI workforce

By Timothy Villagomez
Special to the Saipan Tribune

Hafa adai, tirow wáámi[/I] and good morning! I welcome all of you to this important Workforce Development Summit to discuss key issues of employment and workforce development.

I would like to open this year’s summit by briefly discussing the government’s role in the economy, particularly as it relates to workforce. In general, our government has three main objectives when it comes to the economy: to increase the rate of economic growth, reduce the rate of inflation, and to reduce the rate of unemployment.

In our first priority to increase the rate of economic growth, we work towards tangible and measurable economic results to produce significant levels of growth. In the United States, this is measured quarterly in terms of GDP or Gross Domestic Product. Healthy economic growth might be a three or four percent increase in GDP in any given quarter. In some rapidly growing economies, particularly in India and China today, annual economic growth might be measured in the double digits. The CNMI previously experienced very high rates of economic growth in the 1980s and 1990s.

However, in some cases, economic growth might contract and a country or territory might post quarterly declines in gross domestic product. In that case, we see an economic recession, or if this trend continues, an economic depression. Today in the CNMI, we are at least suffering from an economic recession. We see garment exports decline and we are experiencing declining visitor arrivals.

Our government’s priority, then, is to increase economic growth by strengthening our primary industries and attracting additional investments. We need to diversify our economy. We need to provide economic incentives and put the right legal infrastructure for economic development in place. And we have been doing just that with initiatives such as new foreign student visas laws, our push in Congress to revise Head Note 3a, and others. We will continue these initiatives.

The second priority of government in the economy is to reduce the rate of inflation, or to arrest the rise in the cost of goods and services to stimulate investment and afford some protection for consumers. Although fuel prices have retreated in recent weeks, we suffered through sharp price spikes earlier this year. Rising fuel prices translates to rising costs of imports and public utilities.

The third priority of government in the economy is to reduce the rate of unemployment. This can also be stated another way: to maximize employment in the marketplace. That is the focus of this summit. Labor is the third factor of production, a necessary ingredient for healthy economic growth for our local communities. A well-trained, well developed workforce invites investment and contributes to strong economic growth. Here in the CNMI we face the challenge of maximizing local employment—of making full use of our local human resources. Here, we are concerned with maximizing the potential of each local employee in the labor force. This entails a diminished reliance on nonresident workers.

Our government’s ability to deal with the third priority of maximizing local employment is greatly impacted by our contracting economy and by inflationary pressures. Much of the causes for these difficulties come from without: from the World Trade Organization rules taking effect in January of 2005 and from Japan Airlines’ decision to withhold air service to our islands.

So the question is, what solutions is the CNMI undertaking internally to maximize local employment? We have called for a comprehensive private sector jobs audit by the Office of the Public Auditor. OPA has performed this audit and has reported their preliminary findings. We look forward to their full report in mid-December, and it is our goal through this audit to identify jobs held by nonresident workers that could be filled by qualified resident workers.

The government has also maintained the labor moratorium and carefully screened exemption applications to ensure that local workers have more employment opportunities.

In addition, one of our administration priorities has been collaboration between the private sector, the Public School System, Northern Marianas College and other relevant agencies to employ local high school graduates, NMC graduates and those competing certification programs, as well as unemployed and under-employed local residents in the private sector. A major part of this collaboration is being undertaken through the Workforce Management Improvement Plan funded by the Office of Insular Affairs.

The three priorities of government in the economy are interrelated. The focus on local employment is dependent on economic growth and inflation. However, we believe economic growth to be the key to workforce development and maximum local employment in the CNMI market.

Through this summit, we have the opportunity to forge close and long lasting programs which will benefit our people. Your support in these efforts and your participation in this summit are vital to the revitalization of the Commonwealth economy and the raising of the standard of living for our people. Governor Fitial and I thank you for your commitment to this challenge and your commitment to working with us to improve the quality of life for the people of the islands.

Thank you, [I]si Yu’us ma’ase, yan olomwaay.[/I]