Ogo: Repeal Rota ban on export of Bayogo seeds

Julie Ogo

Rep. Julie Marie A. Ogo (Ind-Rota) believes the ban on the export of Bayogo seeds from Rota has now outlives its usefulness and must be repealed in order to boost economic activity on the island.

A news release yesterday from Ogo’s office stated that, following several economic declines, Ogo recognized that the ban has outlived its usefulness and the law has become an obstacle to home economic development or small businesses and farmers who have wild Bayogos growing in abundance in their farm fields or nearby jungle.

The 13th Rota Legislative Delegation enacted the law to ban the export of raw Bayogo from Rota as a means to protect this resource from exploitation. When the tourism industry was flourishing in the CNMI, it saw a lot of imported arts and crafts that were similar if not replicas of local arts and crafts. “Eventually, we saw our local arts and crafts drop out of our local tourist markets,” the news release stated, and one of those arts and crafts that fell victim to this was the arts and crafts created from Bayogo, known in English as St. Thomas (large seed) and Sea Bean (small seed).

A Bayogo seed. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

“Rota has been hit hard the most in every economic downturn, because of its distance from the rest of the Northern Mariana Islands and prohibitive travel costs, and instead of waiting for tourist arrivals on Rota to buy arts and crafts, the people can export raw Bayogos and earn a living subsistence or start creating arts and crafts for export to where the tourists are or take advantage of the technology and market their products online,” Ogo said.

For these reasons, Ogo has drafted a Rota local bill repealing Public Law 13-22 that bans Bayogo export so the Rota people can begin engaging in the Bayogo exporting business, and is currently working on a proposal to ban the importation of raw Bayogo or any of its processed form, for 15 years until the local arts and crafts or hand or machine manufactured goods from Bayogo is comfortably nestled in the market.

“I hope that this will work in tandem with the Investment Incentive Reform Act of 2023 (H.B 23-53) that I introduced and P.L. 20-86 establishing the CNMI Product Seal and begin to see a budding exporting industry come to fruition,” she said.

For anyone interested in contributing ideas, email Ogo’s office at kuentosmarianas@gmail.com. (Saipan Tribune)