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Gov’t urged Reduce labor costs to attract new investors
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Posted on Feb 28 2001
The CNMI government has been asked to initiate programs that would build up a strong local labor force to pave the way for a reduced cost of doing business in the Northern Marianas.
This would help the Commonwealth mitigate current investor climate constraints.
According to a report submitted to the Office of Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio, building a local labor force would minimize the islands’ dependence on skilled nonresident workers.
The report said although labor cost in the CNMI, as seen by American investors, is low, Asian businessmen who are more likely to infuse fresh capital into the CNMI looks at current figures as high.
“From the US perspective, the cost of labor is already quite attractive, as is the access to virtually unlimited supplies of skilled and semi-skilled workers. If these attributes can be retained, opportunities for investment from the US are favorable,” the document said.
In order to highlight cost advantages for Asian businessmen, the same report recommended that other equally important factors should be emphasized.
But as it is, the government is yet to institute strong incentives that would actually help efforts to entice foreign investors to infuse fresh capital into the Northern Marianas.
The document has also suggested that the government institute its own training programs in support of particular types of new industries, or offer to subsidize the initial training of employees in startup firms.
A trained labor force, it said, is essential for the operations of any new business. “Any deficiencies in the availability of skills could be remedied in this way. This type of program would also provide a concrete example of community support for new investment projects.” (AR Fajardo)
