MV’S online poll results indicate that 44% of residents are considering leaving the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands permanently. This reflects a community in the grip of a deepening economic crisis. Leaders have recently issued urgent warnings that the territory is at a critical “breaking point,” as the pillars of its economy — primarily tourism and small businesses — struggle to recover from the post-pandemic slump. The departure of legacy companies, such as Hyatt Regency Saipan and T Galleria by DFS, after decades of operation has sent shockwaves through the workforce, leaving many to feel that the local economy is “collapsing” and that survival mode is the new reality.
This sentiment is further fueled by severe fiscal challenges that have begun to directly impact everyday life and essential services. The government has implemented revised austerity measures for the 2026 fiscal year, leading to budget shortfalls that reduced school days to “no-school Mondays.”
Residents are facing a “perfect storm” of rising costs, such as soaring food prices, and a shrinking labor market as foreign worker visa caps tighten, making it increasingly difficult for both businesses to operate and families to maintain a stable quality of life on the islands.
Consequently, the potential mass exodus of nearly half the population poses a strategic risk not just to the islands’ culture, but to their long-term viability. CNMI officials have appealed for urgent federal intervention, arguing that the population decline and business closures are compounding effects that could eventually impair the territory’s ability to support U.S. national security operations in the Pacific. Without a significant shift in tourism policy — such as reviving securing new federal aid — many residents feel they have no choice but to seek prospects elsewhere, leading to a permanent “brain drain” that may take generations to reverse.
NOEL M. SORIA
Gualo Rai, Saipan
