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Investor proposes university hub in Marpi
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Posted on Feb 06 2020
An investor is proposing to convert the former Marianas Resort & Spa and Golf Course in Marpi into a university hub, promising a steady supply of tourists from students who could be studying on Saipan in the future.
Speaking before members of the House of Representatives, AMCON LLCs Dr. Christian Wei proposed to boost the CNMI tourism industry through education.
“The best way is to start this concept of supplying tourism with education,” Wei said. “When you have a lot of students studying here, they’ll bring relatives, friends and parents, and they’re not going to just come up one time; they will come many times.”
According to Wei, students spending four years on the island equate to revenue, as they would be spending for their needs during their entire stay on Saipan.
“Then they will invite friends and relatives to come and then we’ll also get some of relatives to come to study. So if we have a good numbers of students come, they will attract new tourists,” he added.
AMCON is envisioning Saipan to be the gateway for Asian countries to have higher education and have access to English as a Second Language courses, and even sports education centered on golf, accommodating around 2,000 students annually.
The company also intends to coordinate with local hotels and real estate owners on the island to spread the students’ accommodations.
With a $30 million initial working capital target, AMCON is proposing to secure the golf course resort in Marpi, and train and hire “international experience workers” with priority on the local workforce.
“As long as we have all the concentration and put forth the effort in both the private and the public efforts, we believe that we can create the CNMI as one of the best, not just in tourism but higher education in the Pacific,” Wei said.
According to AMCON, through this process, more residents would opt to stay on island, given the better job opportunities.
