Internal vs external forces

Maldives is an island nation in the Indian Ocean. The economy is based on tourism. Maldives is very famous for its natural beauty, which includes the blue ocean and white beaches, accompanied by clean air and pleasant temperatures. But Maldives is ranked the third most endangered nation due to flooding from climate change. Climate scientists had issued stark warnings about rising sea levels, which could eventually engulf the Maldives.

In November 2008, then President, Mohamed Nasheed came up a visionary notion and announced plans to put aside some of Maldives tourism revenues to buy another homeland in India, Sri Lanka, or Australia. But Australia’s government has already turned down a request to offer citizenship to the Maldivians.

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in the West Pacific Ocean is a U.S. territory. The economy also relies heavily on tourism. The CNMI tourism industry has been dwindling since late 2005, while a rapidly fading garment industry made the bad economic situation worse, until 2008 when the last garment factory closed. The CNMI fell into the category of a place dependent upon a single industry, tourism.

The CNMI shares similar tropical island elements as Maldives, offering most sought-after holiday destinations. Fortunately, the CNMI isn’t facing the looming situation as Maldivian does—so far. Furthermore, in terms of its single industry, CNMI tourism business shows signs of recovery. In local newspapers, one marketing expert described 2013 as an exciting year of the rebirth of the CNMI tourism. Experts also project that the number of arrivals will continually increase in 2014.

The question we need to ask ourselves is, while the CNMI is en route to economic recovery, have we thus far just been lucky enough?

Winnowing out a good, promising economy from a bad economy can’t be achieved by entrepreneurship alone. A consistent government policy with clear intentions would help entrepreneurs gain confidence in committing to their investment, to cut through their own difficult road and meet their objectives.

However, government uncertainty and inconsistencies hamper existing CNMI investors from maximizing potential capacities of expanding their businesses, especially for those ethnic business groups whose relationship with the government is passive, not active. On, issues that might impact the local economy, they simply sit there preparing for whatever the government gives them. They whine when vague policy is announced. They believe the rumors that the feds may revoke the Chinese and Russian visa waiver privilege, and they probably won’t be able to get back their investments. Instead, they playing safe, stressing the advantage of carefully calculated business actions.

Potential foreign investors, understanding the investment repercussions, take a no-nonsense investment approach and are cautious about new projects in the CNMI, urging government to put into place a long-term framework and to offer some kind of stability before they forge concrete investments decisions.

The residents of Maldives face collective homelessness as a result of rising sea levels that come from external natural forces; their fate depends to a large degree on global consensus of how to deal with climate change.

Tourism is the driving force behind the CNMI’s economic recovery and, although there is no imminent external threat, internal policy disaster might engulf the CNMI economy if policymakers act impetuously and blindly.

The holiday season is coming, and 2014 is the Year of the Horse. Chinese treat the horse as an auspicious symbol for speedy success. If CNMI is to reproduces its success story, it requires courage and effort from politicians, getting people’s minds focused on what’s next, and not what has been lost, and boosting long term growth prospects. In auspicious 2014 we still have lot more to learn to be flexible, to heed policy trend and to share the knowledge of tackling the issues.