Marianas Visitors Authority Managing Director Perry J. P. Tenorio will share updates on programs that aim to revive the local tourism industry, while Joseph P. Bradley, senior vice president and economic and market statistics officer of the Bank of Guam, will talk about “Life after the Garment Factories.”
Attorneys Maya B. Kara and Bruce Mailman will speak on the potential disruptions that will be caused by federalization.
The three-day conference will start at 10 a.m. with the organizational meeting of the Association of Pacific Island Local Governments in the business room of the Fiesta Resort & Spa in Garapan.
The conference will also include discussions on the upcoming military buildup on Guam.
One of the guest speakers is Navy Capt. Ulysses O. Zalamea, the deputy director of the U.S. Defense Department’s Joint Guam Program Office.
Herbert “Bert” Johnson, Trades Academy of the Guam Contractors Association education director, will talk about the need recruit and train skilled workers for the military buildup.
The cultural aspect will be tackled by Flora Baza Quan, marketing director of the Resource Group of Companies and the “Queen of Chamorro Music.”
She will focus on the “preservation of culture during the race for progress in the Pacific Rim.”
Saipan Municipal Council member Felipe Atalig said if he will again ask the members to help the CNMI lobby for the inclusion of the Philippines in the U.S. visa waiver program.
“The Filipino deserved to be recognized and appreciated because they fought side-by-side with the Americans. This is long over due,” Atalig said.
The Association of Pacific Island Local Governments comprised mayors, city officials and municipal council members from countries around the Pacific.
Last year’s conference on Guam attracted more than 450 delegates.
This year, conference officials will be on Tinian on May 16 and 17.
