The Republic of Palau
Positions for the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
- Developing an Action Plan to Address Urban Growth in the Asia-Pacific Region
Economic booms due to rapid technological advancement has led to mass amounts of urbanization in East Asia and the Pacific regions, with an average urban population growth of 2.4% in the last decade. According to a report released by the World Bank in 2015, comparative levels of European urbanization in the past have occurred over the course of fifty years while the same level has been reached in East Asia in just ten years. Though this high level of urbanization stems from the positive cause of growth in the region, it brings about many new difficulties as resources, particularly space, become scarce. The Republic of Palau recognizes that debate addressing urbanization must include problems faced by established urban centers as well as considerations for emerging urban areas.
Currently, 88% of Palau’s population resides in urban areas. The most populated urban area in Palau is Koror City with approximately half of the total population residing there. The center of Palau’s government is in its capital Ngerulmud, which has only 391 residents. Ngerulmud was designed meticulously, taking into account the limited space of the island in general and the anticipated number of people the city would be expected to support. However, with city development finishing in the mid-2000s, it remains a small fraction of the size of Koror City. This highlights the role business plays in the size and development of an urban area, as Koror City owes its considerably larger population to being the commercial capital of Palau.As an island country relying mainly on tourism, Palau recognizes the importance of considering environmental impact when developing urban centers. The need for land to increase development often leads to destruction of natural habitats; this has been reduced by designating nature reserves as well as building up on already developed land, as seen in Japan. The World Bank has found that the most economically and environmentally efficient method of development is focusing on high-technology manufacturing in larger urban areas and smaller scale manufacturing in less developed cities, as based on models in Brazil and the United States. As states begin to face the negative side effects of urbanization, considering previous urbanization successes and failures is beneficial to alleviating these.
Solutions to problems accompanying urbanization should make the distinction between existing problems in already large and growing urban centers and potential future problems for budding urban areas. Lack of space has become a major issue in current urban centers, and this should be considered when developing new cities. Palau recommends encouraging investment in suburban areas, especially around developing urban centers. This would ideally allow a more even distribution of development in the area as well as allowing more space for people to relocate to take advantage of this growth and reduce the cost of living relative to urban living. Part of this investment should also include improved public transportation between suburban and urban areas, which would allow people already living in urban areas to live further away and commute into the city, which should aid with overcrowding and scare resources. Urban areas tend to put a strain on natural resources as well as forests and rivers are depleted and drained to make room for development, causing a strain on the environment. Palau encourages the incentivization of green practices for operating businesses as well as government-sponsored educational campaigns on proper waste management for citizens. States should also consider advising city planners to incorporate alternative energy sources and environmentally-friendly practices into the infrastructure for new urban centers. Maintaining infrastructure also poses an issue to large urban centers. Emerging cities should work to design infrastructure with maintenance plans in mind to allow the people in the city to function while inevitably necessary maintenance occurs. Urban centers with already depleted infrastructure should consider incentivizing residents of dilapidated areas to improve infrastructure within their area to perform maintenance without displacing residents. By hitting a spurt of urbanization in modern times, East Asia and the Pacific region has the unique opportunity to learn from previous failures in the development of urban centers and as such can design more sustainable urban centers.
- Examining the Impact of Organized Crime on Sustainable Development
Wildlife trafficking and human trafficking have plagued every country with no respect to borders, and even the small island nation of Palau is not exempt from the horrors these crimes bring. The Republic of Palau has been at the forefront of economic growth and expansion in the Micronesian region by paying special attention to the tourist sector of the economy, and mounting an aggressive response to all pirate and poaching vessels. President Tommy Remengesau’s campaign slogan of “Preserve the Best and Improve the Rest” highlights how much Palau values its coral reefs and the sharks that populate these underwater attractions, because the tourist industry and therefore their economy rely so heavily on this unique environment. Palau leads the Asian-Pacific region in tackling the problem of poaching, a part of organized crime that affects all members of the United Nations, whether by land or sea. Combating poachers in an area of approximately 230,000 square miles of open ocean requires that the Republic of Palau launch an aggressive response to preserve their underwater environment and therefore the health of their economy.
In 2006, Palau was among the first nations to ban bottom trawling (an illegal fishing practice that involves dragging a weighted net across the ocean floor), in both the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and on the high seas. The net catches everything in its path, damaging up to 98% of the coral cover of seamounts. In 2009, Palau prohibited commercial shark fishing, and finally in 2014, Palau announced plans to ban commercial fishing, and creating an enormous protected area. However, if these reserves are not policed, they become magnets for poachers who see the area as competition free zones and an open invitation to catch fish and inadvertently damage the coral reefs. Other than policing, forms of surveillance can be seen through sea-traffic data, which is collected by deploying devices in the water, such as sonar and camera buoys, and hydrophones. However, these forms of surveillance are often very expensive, especially if they must cover a vast area of ocean. In a year, Palau may face up to 100 incursions by pirate vessels, and many of these vessels will be able to flee to international waters away from Palau’s jurisdiction, as Palau has only a sole patrol boat, the PSS Remeliikcapable of running deep waters. The poaching vessels that Palau does catch are often found to be just pawns in the grand scheme of poaching. The crew are the result of a type of human trafficking called forced labor and are often illiterate and just following the orders of a nameless captain; they are not the enemy.
The Republic of Palau suggest that other Member States adopt similar policies of creating commercial fishing bans and sanctuaries that can protect the underwater environment that many countries rely on for tourism and economic development. The most reliable form of ocean law enforcement continues to be real time direct surveillance. Palau proposes the Surveillance of High seas and Reefs Committee (SHARC). The international system would support the direct communication and good will of each Member state that all information regarding possible threats of piracy or poaching to be made immediately known to all states that could be affected. Surveillance methods include standard marine patrols by other states and/or routine satellite images that show potential threats. The committee shall also require that states mandate that any person currently holding or wishing to hold a fishing license shall go through education to identify pirates and shall also be required to immediately alert authorities to illicit activities. The last initiative of this committee shall be to set up proper rehabilitation centers for victims of human trafficking to ensure that they can reenter society and be employed. Our people are our greatest resource and we should trust them to help keep our countries safe. The SHARC initiative will make it more difficult for pirates and poachers to steal our resources and destroy our environment by making the ocean a smaller place that is equally protected by each country, instead of forcing countries to only be responsible for themselves.