Trade and investment key to economic growth, job creation

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah—Gov. Benigno R. Fitial and governors from across the country and territories converged here for the 2011 National Governors Association Annual Meeting.

The nation’s governors engaged in a lively discussion on the role of international trade and investment in their state’s economic development strategy to foster economic growth and job creation during yesterday’s special Economic Development and Commerce Committee plenary session at the National Governors Association Annual Meeting.

The governor-led discussion, titled “Governors’ Perspectives on Trade and Investment,” featured governors’ perspectives on opportunities and obstacles to promoting trade and investment in the states. The plenary session included guests Lew W. Cramer, president and CEO, World Trade Center Utah; J. Keith Crisco, secretary, North Carolina Department of Commerce; Jeff Frazier, senior director, Internet Business Solutions Group, Cisco Systems, Inc.; and Fred Lampropoulos, CEO, Merit Medical.

“State economies are increasingly global in terms of both markets and competition,” said Utah Gov. Gary Herbert, committee chair. “In addition to multinational corporations, many more small and medium-sized U.S.-based companies are competing worldwide.”

“Governors, as the principal stewards of state economic success, are leading efforts to grow their state economies by promoting the export of goods and services and attracting international investment,” said North Carolina Gov. Bev Purdue, committee vice chair. “This session offered us the opportunity to share tactics with colleagues, as well as private sector leaders.”

For his part, Fitial spoke of the economic plight affecting the people of the Northern Marianas due in large part to the implementation of federal policies in the Commonwealth.

“The people of the CNMI enjoyed once a booming economy that was ravaged by the exodus of the garment industry following the WTO and the further damage to the economy brought about by the enactment of U.S. Public Law 110-229,” said Fitial.

Fitial also boasted about the CNMI’s tax structure, which is considered attractive to mainland investors. Upon learning of the tax structure, Lampropoulos announced that he would like to visit the islands to consider expanding his business ventures. [I](Office of the Governor)[/I]