OIA PRESS RELEASESecretary Kempthorne Hosts 2006 Business Conference
(Honolulu, Hawaii, November, 2006.) Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne and Deputy Assistant Secretary David Cohen of the Office of Insular Affairs hosted the 2006 Conference on Business Opportunities in the Islands on November 13 & 14, in Honolulu. The Conference was a huge success with more than 800 participants and more than 250 separate companies from the U.S. Mainland, Hawaii, the Territories and the Freely Associated States and participants from each of the seven island jurisdictions of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau. Presidents Kessai Note (RMI), Tommy Remengesau (Palau) and Joseph Urusemal (FSM) headed their respective delegations from the Freely Associated States and American Samoa Governor Togiola and Northern Marianas Lieutenant Governor Timothy Villagomez headed their respective delegations from the U.S. Territories. The U.S. Virgin Islands were represented by Senate President Lorraine Berry and Guam was represented by Andy Jordanou. Governor Linda Lingle of Hawaii, Mayor Mufi Hanneman of Honolulu and General Daniel Leaf of U.S. Pacific Command attended as well. In his opening remarks, Secretary Kempthorne highlighted his goal for the Conference: “to promote partnerships where island businesses and off-island businesses can work together to achieve success that they couldn’t achieve separately. We’d like to see these partnerships generate jobs and economic prosperity in the islands,” he continued. Each of the island jurisdictions hosted a table to promote the best their islands had to offer. Various speakers covered a wide range of topics including: IT/Broadband Capacity; Aquaculture; Transportation; Marine Base expansion on Guam; Transportation; Renewable Energy; Business Support and Financing. Secretary Kempthorne also hosted bilateral meetings with the heads of delegations. - The staff of the Office of Insular Affairs will continue working with conference participants from the private sector and delegates from the seven jurisdictions to enhance continued cooperation and promotion of private sector development in the islands. For more pictures from the Conference, click here. For more information on the Conference, contact the Office of Insular Affairs at (202) 208-3003. The Office of the Insular Affairs administers the U.S. Department of the Interior’s responsibilities in the U.S. insular areas of American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the Palmyra Atoll Excluded Areas and the administration and oversight of Federal assistance provided to the Freely Associate States of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau under the Compacts of Free Association. The Office of Insular Affairs executes these responsibilities on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior. |
