While Washington debates budgets and war games, people in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) are worrying about groceries, rebuilding homes and keeping the lights on. In April the U.S. Department of War acknowledged that the CNMI faces mounting fiscal strain and warned that economic instability in the islands could undermine America’s strategic posture in the Indo-Pacific. A month later, the Saipan Chamber of Commerce braced residents for a 20-hour workweek as the government struggles to stretch a FY2027 budget of just $101.9 million, leaving only $101.9 million for appropriations after fixed obligations. The CNMI’s precarious economy, still reeling from Super Typhoon Sinlaku and the lingering impacts of pandemic era tourism collapse, is threatening not only livelihoods but also the very infrastructure that supports U.S. power projection in the western Pacific.
Yet amid these crises there is an underreported opportunity. In early 2026, Google’s Proa subsea cable will land on Saipan, linking the CNMI and Guam to Japan and the continental United States. At the same time, CNMI officials have drafted a Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) plan that envisions every resident enjoying robust, affordable high speed internet by 2030. The plan calls for community digital hubs, digital literacy training and stakeholder engagement across government, business and civil society. On paper, at least, the Marianas are poised to become one of the most connected island chains in the world.
But perhaps the most powerful thing about this project is not the technology itself. It is the name.
Proa.
For generations across Micronesia and the Marianas, the proa was never just a vessel. It was survival. It was memory. It was navigation by stars, swells, birds and instinct. It represented the ability of island people to cross vast oceans with precision long before modern states, satellites or fiber optics existed. Ocean wayfinding navigators understood something the modern world often forgets: that connection is not only physical, but relational. The ocean was never what separated islands. It was what connected them.
That is why the use of the word “Proa” for this subsea cable project should not be viewed lightly or merely as branding. It unintentionally invokes an entire history of Indigenous navigation, resilience and interconnectedness. The irony, however, is that traditional proas were guided by islanders themselves. This new digital proa risks being steered almost entirely by outside interests unless CNMI leadership actively defines what this infrastructure is meant to serve.
The question nobody in Washington is asking is this: Who will benefit from the new digital lifeline?
Without proactive policies, fiber optic cables and broadband grants could simply strengthen the same extractive systems that have kept the islands dependent on tourism, federal funds and military spending. Recent history offers a warning. The CNMI imports more than 90 percent of its food, and its 316 farms on 2,833 acres produced just $2.8 million in sales in 2023. When global supply chains fail, grocery prices skyrocket and shelves empty quickly. Likewise, electricity generation depends almost entirely on diesel. The CNMI’s Priority Climate Action Plan notes that more than 99 percent of power comes from fossil fuels, making electricity the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions while leaving the islands vulnerable to fuel price shocks, typhoons and infrastructure failures. The plan proposes replacing diesel generation with utility scale solar, battery storage systems and renewable infrastructure on government facilities. That is promising, but implementation will take years.
And many residents right now are simply trying to recover.
Sinlaku changed people. Entire communities are still living with damaged homes, financial stress, disrupted routines and emotional exhaustion. For many families, broadband access or digital policy may understandably not even be within their immediate view. Their focus is survival, recovery and stability. That is precisely why this conversation must be led now by policymakers, planners and community leadership before the direction of this infrastructure is decided entirely by outside actors.
From cable landing to digital colonization?
The Proa cable could help diversify the economy by attracting remote work opportunities, expanding e commerce, supporting telehealth and creating new educational access for island communities. CNMI’s draft BEAD plan explicitly aims to “promote digital literacy, increase broadband equity, and support access and affordability.” But true digital equity requires more than infrastructure. It requires data sovereignty and local control.
Undersea cables often come with opaque data handling agreements, foreign surveillance concerns and centralized corporate ownership. If the Marianas allow big tech companies or national security agencies to treat the islands merely as strategic waypoints for data movement, then the promised economic benefits may never truly reach local communities.
The CNMI Legislature should therefore consider pursuing a Digital Rights and Data Sovereignty framework before the Proa cable becomes fully operational. Such measures could require stronger privacy protections for locally generated data, encourage local ownership stakes in future digital infrastructure and ensure that economic gains tied to broadband development remain anchored in Saipan, Tinian and Rota rather than flowing entirely outward.
Build a blue green economy, not another dependency economy
Digital sovereignty should be paired with renewable energy and food sovereignty. The CNMI’s commitment to the Blue Planet Climate Agreement pledges a path toward a 100 percent renewable energy future and recognizes that islands are among the least responsible for climate change while remaining among the most vulnerable to its consequences.
The Priority Climate Action Plan proposes utility scale solar photovoltaic systems with battery storage on Saipan, Tinian and Rota. Investments in local solar cooperatives and resilient energy systems could reduce long term energy costs, create jobs and lessen dependence on imported fuel shipments vulnerable to typhoons or geopolitical instability.
Similarly, broadband and renewable infrastructure can support modern agriculture and fisheries. Precision agriculture, hydroponics, vertical farming and marine resource monitoring all depend on reliable electricity and internet access. By connecting farmers and fishermen to digital markets, training opportunities and local supply chains, the CNMI could begin reducing import dependence while keeping more money circulating locally.
Mental Health and Disaster Resilience
Typhoon Sinlaku exposed another vulnerability that cannot always be seen in damaged buildings or downed power lines: emotional trauma. Mental health professionals working in the aftermath of the storm reminded residents that distress is normal following major disasters and introduced coping strategies such as the PAUSE RESET NOURISH framework. Broadband infrastructure can help expand access to telehealth, counseling services and community support networks, but only if access remains affordable and equitable.
As climate change intensifies and stronger storms become more frequent across the Indo Pacific, emotional recovery will become just as important as physical reconstruction.
A New Covenant with Washington
CNMI leaders routinely remind federal officials that the islands’ economic instability threatens U.S. strategic interests in the Pacific. In their April letter to President Donald Trump, island leaders warned that without immediate federal action the CNMI faces “irreversible damage.” Assistant Secretary of War John Noh acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and pledged deeper engagement.
But deeper engagement should not mean deeper dependency.
Rather than waiting for rescue, the CNMI should leverage its strategic importance to negotiate for investments that strengthen local resilience: renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, broadband equity, mental health systems and economic diversification. If the Marianas are expected to serve as a strategic anchor for the United States in the Indo Pacific, then the people of the Marianas deserve infrastructure that strengthens community survival, not just geopolitical positioning.
The United States must also respect islanders’ concerns regarding deep sea mining and weakened environmental safeguards. When Guam leaders opposed BOEM’s efforts to reduce consultation requirements and expand proposed lease areas, they warned that local governments risked being excluded from decisions that could permanently impact Pacific waters and ecosystems. That warning should not be ignored.
Conclusion
It is tempting for outsiders to see the Marianas only as a chain of military outposts and a deep sea frontier. But islanders are also parents, farmers, students, fishermen, cultural practitioners, ocean wayfinding navigators and entrepreneurs who deserve the same digital rights and opportunities afforded elsewhere in America.
The naming of this subsea cable as “Proa” should remind us of something important. Ancient proas carried islanders across uncertain waters because they understood how to read the stars, currents and conditions around them. Navigation required awareness, preparation and collective responsibility.
The CNMI now stands in similar waters.
As the Proa cable prepares to land and renewable energy plans move forward, CNMI leaders must ensure this new digital voyage is guided not only by outside investment and strategic interests, but by the long term survival, dignity and self determination of the islands themselves.
Otherwise, the promise of Proa risks becoming just another vessel that passed through the Marianas without truly carrying its people forward.
Sources:
[1] U.S. Department of War acknowledges CNMI economic strain and strategic importance.
[2] Saipan Chamber of Commerce warns of economic ripple effects due to proposed 20 hour workweek reductions.
[3] CNMI food import and agricultural production statistics.
[4] CNMI Priority Climate Action Plan on diesel dependence and renewable energy transition.
[5] CNMI commitment to the Blue Planet Climate Agreement.
[6] CNMI Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Plan.
[7] Mental health recovery guidance and disaster resilience following Super Typhoon Sinlaku.
[8] CNMI leaders warn of “irreversible damage” absent stronger federal support.
[9] Guam leadership opposition to weakened BOEM consultation requirements and expanded lease proposals.
Gregorie Michael Towai (Eipéráng) is a cultural advocate and independent researcher from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, currently residing in Oregon. He writes on Pacific governance, ocean policy and diaspora political affairs. ORCID: 0009-0002-3004-8972.
Editor’s note: The views and opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of NMI News Service or its staff. All assertions are the sole responsibility of the writer. To submit an op-ed for consideration, email your piece to brad.ruszala@nminewsservice.com.