GOVERNOR Arnold I. Palacios promoted the CNMI to foreign investors during the 2023 SelectUSA Investment Summit organized by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Held on May 1 to 4 at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland, the summit is a high-profile event dedicated to promote foreign direct investment in the U.S. and its territories.
Among the participants are over 1,900 foreign investors who have been vetted by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Since its inception, SelectUSA has facilitated more than $146 billion in investment, creating and/or retaining over 166,000 U.S. jobs, the department said.
On Wednesday, Palacios joined other insular area governors in meeting multinational companies and other business organizations to discuss the benefits and advantages of investing in the CNMI and other territories.
With Palacios were Guam Gov. Lourdes Leon Guerrero, American Samoa Gov. Lemanu Palepoi Sialega Mauga, Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi, and U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Tregenza A. Roach.
Palacios’ attendance in the summit is part of the CNMI government’s efforts to attract new investments to the Commonwealth.
He was also scheduled to speak in a roundtable discussion with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo regarding investment opportunities in the CNMI.
“The Commonwealth’s participation in this summit will raise the CNMI’s exposure to hundreds of foreign direct investors that have been screened by the U.S. Department of Commerce,” the governor said.
“There are numerous potential industries that we can develop in the CNMI to diversify our economy, and participation in the SelectUSA Summit will be a timely, cost-effective, and appropriate way to meet with hundreds of pre-selected investors in a single place,” he added.
The governor was also invited to a meeting by officials of the Japanese and Indian embassies who facilitated introductions to investors from those countries. Palacios was asked to speak to more than 200 participants at an event hosted by the Indian embassy.
In addition, he participated in an event hosted by the Japan External Trade Organization, a government-related organization that works to promote mutual trade and investment between Japan and other countries.
The other U.S. government representatives participating in the summit are Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm, White House Senior Advisor and Infrastructure Implementation Coordinator Mitch Landrieu, and Export-Import Bank of the United States President and Chair Reta Jo Lewis.
Speaker Edmund S. Villagomez accompanied the governor at the summit.
CNMI Gov. Arnold I. Palacios with Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero during one of the opening events of the 2023 SelectUSA Investment Summit at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, MD.
Gov. Arnold I. Palacios shakes hands with SelectUSA Executive Director Jasjit Singh at the 2023 SelectUSA Investment Summit in National Harbor, MD.
From left, Gov. Arnold I. Palacios, U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E. Knapper, and Speaker Edmund S. Villagomez at the 2023 SelectUSA Investment Summit in National Harbor, MD.
