The CNMI can become economically strong again if…

After reading several essays on the question of why some countries become economically strong and others do not, they got me thinking about our situation in the CNMI. What do we have to do to become economically strong? As I share some of my thoughts, please add some of your own and see where we meet or disagree.

I am reminded of Nauru, once so wealthy, and its fall from having the world’s richest citizens to utter poverty in just a few years. It had huge natural deposits of phosphate. Now it has all been mined out and Nauru has become one of the poorest countries in the world. Its money has been spent and the people live in extreme poverty. How could this happen?

Somali next comes to mind. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991, there has been no central government control over most of the country’s territory. As a result Somalia has been characterized as a failed state and is one of the poorest and most violent states in the world. My conclusion is that a country need not be rich in natural minerals, but rich in its quality of citizens!

Simply put, a successful country is one that provides a high standard of living or a quality of life in which each citizen can express himself and feel secure. It is a country in which every citizen is well educated and is trained in various skills of work. As a result these successful countries enjoy tremendous stability and prosperity. Here are the names of only a few of the more successful countries: Finland, Singapore, Switzerland, Japan and Austria. Notice that none of them possess any natural resources, only motivated citizens!

Writer John Issa pointed out in one of his essays three characteristics of prosperous nations. It is interesting to note that Mr. Issa also stated that many prosperous nations don’t necessarily possess much natural -resources. To prove his point, Mr. Issa pointed to several non-prosperous countries that have tremendous amounts of natural resources, yet they continually find themselves mired in huge pockets of poverty and tremendous challenges of social and economic unrest. For example, study the history of several African countries and South American countries.

One of the first characteristics of a successful country, wrote Mr. Issa, is that the people of the successful countries put a premium on quality education for all citizens and this result shows in their productivity. The people are fairly highly educated and have a strong incentive for work.

A second characteristic is that these successful countries display a great deal of honesty in government and in the overall society. While in our society, the U.S. and in the less prosperous ones, governments and individuals in significant numbers seem constantly mired in scandal and corruption. As a matter of fact, crime seems to pay in the case of special interest groups and individuals who operate above and outside the law.

Consider some of these activities daily being paraded in the media. Is it any wonder that the U.S. and we in the CNMI are beginning to feel the depressing results started over the years from these unsavory activities? There is too much of “What is in it for me?” attitude.

Mr. Issa states that the third characteristic of these prosperous societies is that they are functioning democracies. It seems that democracy goes beyond just lip service and ballot casting. However in less prosperous countries too often people don’t know their democratic rights; laws are inconsistent and sometimes take away rather than protect civil rights.

A fourth one that I would add is that these prosperous countries have a characteristic of respect for the environment and for one another. In other words, a mutual respect and pride in where they live and who they are.

In a recent issue of Time Magazine, writer Tali Sharot states that to make progress we need to be able to imagine alternative realities—better ones—and we need to believe that we can achieve them. Such faith helps motivate us to pursue our goals.

In other words we must become optimists. Even if that better future is often an illusion, optimism has clear benefits in the present. Hope keeps our minds at ease, lowers stress, and improves physical health. This wholesome positive attitude of optimism must be cultivated and promoted by our leaders. Simply put: optimism pays!

Having lived and worked in Japan for 16 years, I learned first hand what optimism means. One of my first opportunities was to work for a Japanese automobile parts manufacturer. I helped introduce coin operated-lockers to the Japanese market. Because the concept was so new they were not quickly accepted.

Though I was discouraged, the Japanese president was not. He encouraged me to keep plugging away at the market. Finally after six months we received a small order. It took another three months to achieve another small order. After that, orders began to flow in, and the company achieved success and the product became popular.

There are other examples I could relate that proved to me the importance of having optimism and faith in the future. Nothing possesses more kinetic energy in a globalizing world than optimism.

Much of Japan’s success can be traced to the country’s economic disadvantages. Lacking in resources, Japanese firms were forced to develop skills and technologies. The Japanese have been able to turn disadvantages into advantages. Watch Japan in the next few years as she rebuilds herself from her recent tumulus and devastating tragedy.

From all my research I have arrived at the following conclusions that we in the CNMI must do if we are to become prosperous and a happy society:

1. The first one is that we need a strong government that can mobilize and direct resources that are important. Our success hinges critically on the quality of government leadership. It must be a development oriented leadership, and possess the ability to promote good talent to head critical institutions. It must develop a collaborative approach to policy formulation with industry and the United States, our benefactor. The public sector and the private sector must be as partners. There must be mutually beneficial partnerships, not antagonistic knee jerking relationships.

Will this ever happen here as long as we continue to vote for relatives and friends regardless of their experience in leadership? Will we ever realize that quality of government leadership has little room for nepotism and for sycophants? When will we citizens stand up and demand that we enjoy decent public utilities, high quality medical treatment, and decent job opportunities?

Until we demand reform in our political and social environment, we will remain an economic failure. And there will be no one to blame but ourselves. We possess the weapon to make the changes, but do we possess the will and determination required? Think about it!

2. One of the major points to achieving economic prosperity is to train and motivate our labor force whether it be in the office or in our fields. We must take up the tools of all professions and trades and do the work ourselves. We must wrest ourselves from imported labor.

Next week let’s discuss this second point in greater detail for I believe that our educated, trained, and motivated workforce is the most single key to opening the door to a sustainable economic prosperity and a life of fulfillment.

In the midst of the bombings of England, Winston Churchill was asked when would England give up, he replied: “Never give up! Never give up! Never! Never! Never! Never!” How about us? Are we giving up?

Please think about some of the ideas mentioned above. Add yours and discuss them with friends. Until then, have a great day!