WENO, Chuuk—On January 24th, 2022, His Excellency David W. Panuelo—President of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM)—opened the 2nd Resources & Development Conference. Held in the State of Chuuk, and inclusive of delegations from the FSM National Government, the Governments of the States of Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae, and the private sector, the Conference intends to provide a platform to discuss and make recommendations on measures, and implementation modalities, to facilitate sustainable economic development in the FSM. This (lengthy) release will cover the first day of the Conference, inclusive of the President’s opening remarks, an overview of the FSM’s energy sector, and presentations on the FSM’s Overseas
Development Assistance Priorities, Health as an engine for economic growth and security, and the Nation’s nationally-determined-contributions for tackling Climate Change.
The Conference began with opening remarks from both the Honorable Alexander R. Narruhn, Governor of the State of Chuuk, and President Panuelo. Governor Narruhn repeatedly described that professional communications within and between the various levels of Government are essential to the betterment of the Nation, noting that a primary outcome for the 1st Resources & Development Conference in 2018 was a mutual desire to strengthen collaboration between the National Government and the State Governments.
President Panuelo’s remarks covered two separate topics; the first of these was with regards to recent accomplishments and key information for public officials to know about, and the second was with regards to the content at the Conference proper.
On the former, President Panuelo described that although the negotiations for the Compact of Free Association are ongoing that “There has already been a crucial promise from the United States: there will NOT be a fiscal cliff. If the negotiations are not completed by 2023, the U.S. will simply extend financial support until the negotiations are completed,” President Panuelo said. “To say it another way: Fiscal Year 2024 will look identical to Fiscal Year 2023 if the negotiations are still ongoing. Additionally, the U.S. has guaranteed that the financial provisions of the Compact’s Title 2 will absolutely continue; we are simply negotiating the details on those provisions.”
President Panuelo also reiterated other recent accomplishments, such as the Nation joining the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL); the establishment of the United Nations Multi-Country Office in the North Pacific; the forthcoming East Micronesia Cable, which is fully funded by Australia, Japan, and the United States; and that the FSM’s total debt has been decreasing year-after-year, capped by the fact that the FSM owes zero dollars and zero cents ($0.00) to any foreign Government, which will continue per FSM National Government policy under the Panuelo-George administration.
Following the opening remarks, the first major item on the day’s agenda was an overview of the FSM’s energy sector. Completed and ongoing projects by the end of 2024 carry an investment of $95,000,000 with the result, at present, being that the Nation has 12.05 megawatts of power generation from renewable energy, and 13.73 megawatts of power generation from diesel. An additional $12,900,000 of investment is in the pipeline in the form of proposed or conceptualized projects, of which 100% of them are renewable energy projects that would produce a total of 3.90 megawatts of power generation.
By 2027, the Nation intends to connect 100% of households to electrical access; this is achievable, as in 2018 while only 67% of households had such access, the number was increased to 82% in 2020. While this is largely the result of State-owned utility corporations heading the charge, the Government notes that financial support for the energy sector includes approximately $43,000,000 from the World Bank, approximately $28,500,000 from the Asian Development Bank, $16,000,000 from the European Union, $15,000,000 from Japan, $1,700,000 from the United Nations Development Program, and $5,300,000 from the United States.
After the presentation, the bulk of the morning’s session was a holistic and inclusive breakout discussion amongst ten separate groups of experts from across the Nation. The intention of the breakout discussion was for technical experts from the public and private sectors to engage in dialectic, answering essential questions facing the Nation and its energy sector specifically.
Citizens and stakeholders keen for more detailed information on the Nation’s energy sector are encouraged to review the presentation, a public document, here: https://gov.fm/files/Day1-01-Energy.pdf
The next session was on the FSM’s Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) priorities. Per the FSM’s ODA policy, there are six nation-wide priorities, and two state-specific priorities, the latter of which are determined exclusively by an individual state.
The nation-wide priorities are for the development of a vocational school; the construction of a medical diagnostic center; water security for the FSM; the Pave the Nation Initiative (which already commands more than $75,000,000 of financial assistance to develop climate-resilient roads); renewable energy; and climate-resilient infrastructure for outer island transport.
The two priorities for Yap State are the construction of the Northern Roads, and the procurement of a passenger vessel; the two priorities for Chuuk State are the development of the port/s for inter-island transportation, and road improvements for Uman, Tonoas, Fefan, and Tol; the two priorities for Pohnpei State are road construction around the Nan Madol area, and the construction of a multi-purpose cultural center; and the two priorities for Kosrae State are the Lelu Causeway reconstruction and re-pavement of Kosrae’s roads.
The next session was on how investing in the health sector is equivalent to contributing to economic growth and economic security for the whole of the FSM.
Juxtaposing several distinct quality-of-life measurements, the Honorable Marcus Samo, Secretary of the Department of Health & Social Affairs, described how approximately 45 out of 1,000 children under the age of five would pass away before their fifth birthday; over the decades, this has changed for the better, with 2019’s rate at approximately 12 out of 1,000 children under the age of five having the same fate.
Following the question of “What would you do differently in the next Compact period to dramatically improve the health of the people in the FSM?”, Secretary Samo noted that the Department came to the conclusion that capital improvement and infrastructure projects over the past twenty years had been, as far as the health sector is concerned, largely nonexistent. By extension, moving forward would require adequate resources for capital investment projects and infrastructure, including preventive programs for major public health concerns, and health systems development.
Citizens and stakeholders keen for more detailed information on the Secretary’s presentation, a public document, may find it here: https://gov.fm/files/Day1-03-Health_sector_presentation_for_RD_Symposium.pdf
The final presentation of the first day was with regards to the Nation’s nationally-determined-contributions towards tackling Climate Change. Arguably the most impactful item noted in the presentation is that the final draft of the FSM’s nationally-determined-contributions are up for final review by both the National and State Governments. Officials and citizens and stakeholders interested in the Nation’s commitments towards tackling Climate Change are, by extension, strongly encouraged to contact the Department of Environment, Climate Change, & Emergency Management within the coming days, as it is the intent of the Department for the finalized draft to be submitted to the President in the coming weeks. If the President accepts the draft, it will then be submitted to the 22nd FSM Congress for its consideration and endorsement.
The 2nd Resources & Development Conference will continue until the end of January 28th, 2022. It is the intention of the FSM National Government to continue daily releases on the Conference until its conclusion. Stakeholders interested in the most-detailed reporting after the Conference will wish to be aware that the Department will develop such a report in early February, releasable as a public document.
