United States and the Federated States of Micronesia Hold Annual Joint Economic Management Committee Meeting

HONOLULU - The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and the United States bilateral Joint Economic Management Committee (JEMCO) annual meeting took place Tuesday, August 21, 2018, in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Committee members jointly allocated $65 million for the sectors of health, education, public sector capacity building, private sector development, environment and public sector infrastructure as identified under the Compact of Free Association (Compact) for the benefit of the people of the FSM.   

The JEMCO members from both the FSM and the U.S. governments:

• Emphasized the importance of implementing economic policy reforms to encourage investment and to achieve self-sufficient tax rates; 
• Reiterated the importance of advancing education, to strengthen the FSM’s school accreditation processes, improving access to primary healthcare, and implementing infrastructure projects to contribute to economic advancement, budgetary self-reliance, and sustainable inclusive development;
• Received presentations from FSM state and national government education and health officials on ongoing initiatives within the health and education sectors; and
• Received a presentation from Graduate School USA on the Fiscal Year 2017 FSM Economic Review, an independent assessment of the FSM’s economic performance and policy environment, as well as independently verified economic statistics.

The JEMCO allocated Fiscal Year 2019 Compact assistance to support the FSM Government in the following sectors:

$ 28,270,952   Education
$ 23,753,740   Health
$   1,182,985  Public Sector Capacity Building
$      612,709   Environment
$      799,101   Private Sector Development
$   1,595,949   Enhanced Reporting and Accountability
$   6,942,091   Public Sector Infrastructure
$      244,260   Disaster Assistance Emergency Fund

JEMCO also passed the following resolutions:

• JEMCO 2018-1 Pohnpei Utilities Corporation Institutional Reform-$1,328,220
• JEMCO 2018-2 Public Infrastructure Sector authorizing use of prior-year funds
• JEMCO 2018-3 FY 2019 Compact Assistance

The JEMCO serves to promote the effective use of funding under the Compact agreement and serves as a forum for FSM and U.S. officials to discuss mutual priorities regarding this funding and how best to achieve them for the betterment of people in the Federated States of Micronesia.

It is comprised of five members – three from the U.S. Government and two from the FSM Government: Chairman Nikolao Pula (Director, Office of Insular Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior); Vice Chairman Lorin Robert (FSM Secretary of Foreign Affairs); Leo Falcam, Jr. (Chief of Staff to the President of the FSM); William Gallo (Associate Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services); and Nicholas Dean (Director, Office of Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Island Affairs, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, U.S. State Department).

The JEMCO is expected to reconvene for its mid-year meeting in the Spring of 2019 to preview the FSM Government’s proposed FY 2020 budget proposals. Under current law, sector grant funding under the Compact will expire in 2023, and distributions will then be available from the Trust Fund for the People of the Federated States of Micronesia.

The Secretary of the Interior is responsible for coordinating federal policy with respect to the territories of the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and administering and overseeing U.S. federal assistance provided under the Compact of Free Association to the freely associated states of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. The Assistant Secretary, Insular and International Affairs, executes these responsibilities, on behalf of the Secretary, through the Office of Insular Affairs whose mission is to foster economic opportunities, promote government efficiency, and improve the quality of life for the people of the insular areas.

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