Towards greater self-reliance
p. 39 · Read in the full issue
NIUE, which covers about 260 sq km, is the world’s largest coral atoll and apart from that dubious claim to fame even native Niueans have to admit it doesn’t have a lot going for it.
It has poor soil, an erratic climate that alternates droughts with hurri canes, and cannot produce the abun dance of tropical fruits for which the South Pacific is renowned. It lacks the beaches that attract tourists in their droves to other parts of the region. It has an airport, but with neither tourists nor a flourishing export trade, air-links remain intermittent and economically questionable.
Most Niueans, able to take advan tage of New Zealand citizenship, have given up on their homeland. About 12,000 live in New Zealand and only about 2000 remain at home, struggling to live on subsistence agriculture, on remittance payments from their kith and kin in Auckland and on New Zealand aid. (Niue is the largest per capita aid recipient in the Pacific and amongst the largest in the world.)
Ever since it became self-governing in association with New Zealand in 1974, the question has been asked: Does Niue have a future?
The four-year Niue Concerted Action Plan, introduced with such hope in 1988, ended on June 30 with the question unanswered.
Basically, the NCAP was a development program designed to sustain a living community on Niue. Devised on the recommendation of a review' group comprising people from New Zealand and Niue, it was given an umbrella role over New Zealand s overseas development aid.
The programme was seen from New Zealand’s perspective as a special effort to improve Niue’s economic self-sufficiency by reducing its total dependence on New Zealand aid.
It was, by its very nature, a two-way effort. As the former Labour government’s South Pacific Policy Review Group noted two years ago: “New Zealand is committed to do all that it can to underpin support of Niue, but at the bottom line, New thTmseKes^’^ 5 ** dirCCted at hel P in S Niueans to help That bottom line was underscored by the National government when it came to power. Foreign Minister Don R^A 1 ! 01^rWen 4 to i Nl , ue L earl V last Y ear and politely read the Riot Act. New Zealand, he said, expected to see results for its annual injection of about $lO million into the Niue economy and results meant less money to an overfat public service, which at one stage had 80 per cent of the workforce on the lector and t 0 Stimulate a lar & el y n on-existent private Y ent J°. ? iue . again this Ma y> following New yearly officml mission to discuss the coming aid budget which had warned the government of Sir Robert Rex tnJZ eT f T u WCre in the OfFm S- His tri P did not begin ly ; As h . e was about to leave, he heard the Fono Jcepule had voted a 10 per cent pay rise for public servants a move that did nothing to instil confidence that Niue w'as hmkmg along the same lines as the New Zealand government. 1 he move, which I understand, was never approved by the wue government, was fortunately knocked on the head. If it
Wellington
had proceeded, one could safely say that New Zealand-Niue relations would never have been the same again. (He was also told that the public service had been reduced by about 25 per cent, a painful but necessary exercise, as New Zealand itself has discovered.) As it was, McKinnon came away announcing the most dramatic cut yet in New Zealand’s financial support down 21 per cent in the coming year from $9.5 million to $7.5 million. It could have been worse. The Ministry of External Relations and Trade’s Develop ment Co-operation Division had pro jected $7 million for the 1992-93 year in its published forecasts, and Niue would be fooling itself if it thought this level had been delayed for more than a year or so.
Though the Niueans might not sec it that way, hanging onto that extra half a million dollars for the next 12 months was a bonus. How they use it could prove
very important.
The Niue Constitution Act requires New Zealand “to provide necessary economic and administrative assistance”. That means New Zealand cannot and will not let Niue go down the gurgler.
But the fact that Niue has not made any progress towards a greater degree of indepedence — especially in economic terms since 1974 is a matter for great disappointment in Wellington. The continuing fall in population and the continuing dismal economic performance suggests that Niue is as far from self-reliance as it ever was.
Given the circumstances, nobody expects Niue to become another economic tiger of the Asia-Pacific region, but New Zealand would like to see it trying. From Wellington’s perspective, it has to be said there is not much sign of effort.
It s not all gloom. McKinnon returned saying he had been told that 40 private sector businesses had started since his last visit. If true, that is remarkable, but it remains to be seen how many will succeed, or even survive. More importantly, perhaps, was his belief that Niue’s “expectations of New Zealand assistance are now realistic”.
If, after 18 years of self-government, Niue has finally recognised that the New Zealand gravy train is not an endless series of carriages that would be no mean achievement.
But McKinnon had to hammer his main points again - that New Zealand wants to see an environment in which people are encouraged to invest, wants to see a more active Niue Development Finance Committee, wants to see a greater readiness for Niue to help itself rather than rely on an annual New Zealand bail-out.
Is this unreasonable? I think not. Sir Robert Rex, the island’s only Premier, steps down next year. A considerable amount of jockeying for the succession is going on. For Niue’s sake, one can only hope the winner will not be committed to maintaining the status quo, but will have the vision, and the strength, to pursue whatever radical reforms are necessary to shake’off dependence and make the island a State of which Niueans and parental New Zealand can be proud.