Secretary Dirk Kempthorne encouraged participants to "take hold of the future today" during his keynote address at Interior’s third Conference on Business Opportunities in the Islands, Nov. 13-14, 2006, at the Waikiki Marriott in Honolulu.

“This conference showcased business opportunities in the seven island jurisdictions for which the Department has responsibility and focused on win-win opportunities that benefit both the mainland and the Islands,” he said.

Joining Secretary Kempthorne at the conference were Gov. Linda Lingle of Hawaii; Mufi Hannemann, mayor of Honolulu; and Lt. Gen.Daniel Leaf, deputy commander, U.S. Pacific Command.; President Tommy Remengesau of Palau; President Kessai Note, Republic of Marshall Islands; Gov. Togiola Tulafono, American Samoa; Gov. Charles Turnbull,U.S. Virgin Islands; and other leaders from all seven U.S.-affiliated insular areas. 

“This annual conference provides a venue at which business people from both the mainland and the islands can meet, forge partnerships and do business,” said David Cohen, deputy assistant secretary for Insular Affairs. “The goal is to stimulate private sector-led economic development in all of the insular areas through stronger links to the Hawaii and mainland business community.”

The agenda included industry experts from the states and business and government leaders from the islands speaking on tourism and real estate development, infrastructure development, tax incentives and utilities and telecommunications, among other topics. The islands present numerous attractive opportunities for Hawaii and mainland businesses, including:

• Tourism. The increasing popularity of specialty tourism, including cruises and scuba diving, coupled with growing demand from China and other Asian countries, indicates strong potential for tourism in the islands. Local island-based entrepreneurs are seeking partners to join them in developing a wide assortment of tourism prospects catering to markets as diverse as resort developers, dive and cruise operators, and adventure, historical and eco-tourism oriented travel agencies.
• High Tech/Broadband.  The spread of technology is opening up new opportunities, as advanced telecommunications help to bridge the considerable geographic distances between islands. The U.S. Virgin Islands is connected to the second-largest broadband pipe in the world, and American Samoa, the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia are all undertaking aggressive programs to improve their communications capacity, opening new avenues for investment and growth.
• Infrastructure Development and Improvement. The governments of the insular areas will be seeking to upgrade and possibly privatize large segments of their existing water, power, and transportation infrastructure. This will include growth in the use of new technologies to supply water and power, and innovative financing to better leverage existing resources.
• Contracting opportunities, especially those related to the growth of the U.S. military presence on Guam.

This conference is the latest in a series of events sponsored by the Department of the Interior aimed at stimulating private sector-led economic development in the U.S.-affiliated insular areas. More information on the conference can be found online at http://www.BusinessOpportunitiesConference.com. The department has hosted two previous conferences and led three business opportunities missions to five island jurisdictions over the last three years. These events have included a diverse sampling of the American business community, from industry leaders like Fluor, Microsoft and Starwood Hotels to smaller, specialized technology and tourism firms.

The Secretary of the Interior has administrative responsibility for coordinating federal policy in the territories of American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the responsibility to administer and oversee assistance provided to the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. The Office of Insular Affairs executes these responsibilities on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior.