LeontiefPs Plan For Tahiti

FRENCH Polynesia’s President

Alexandre Leontieff has followed up his controversial report on the state of the economy with a bold plan for its recovery. Many private businesses have gone bankrupt in the past nine months, or have simply closed their doors and laid off staff.

Business credit has dried up, business spending is down, and more money has been transferred out of Tahiti. The Leontieff economic recovery plan involves an immediate revival of work in heavy construction, public works and welfare housing, with an accent on job training. "

The territorial government and the government of France will foot the bill. Local autonomy has been increasing since 1984, but France pumps more money into the territory each year Tahiti depends largely on customs duties to balance its budget.

The President wants to spend: SUSB3.2 million on new government buildings and public works; SUS 4.4 million on major maintenance of ex isting facilities; SUSB.9 million on roads, port and river development; SUS 199,5 million on welfare housing; $U5442,000 on a juice producing fac tory; $U5354,000 on reafforestation, The plan also takes in aid for local

fishermen, provision of ice-making

machines and the creation of a territo rial investment company. Phosphate mining on the westernmost Tuamotu atoll of Mataiva would also be encour aged: the lagoon is estimated to con tain 12 million tonnes of good quality phosphate, and the mining would be expected to create 400 jobs that would continue for the project’s potential 12 to 15 year lifetime. During that time mining should return the territorial government some SUSS3 million.