Economic, Social, and Political Development of the Territories

The Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) carries out the Secretary’s responsibilities for U.S.-affiliated insular areas. These include the territories of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). Residents of these U.S. territories are U.S. citizens or U.S. nationals. Additionally, OIA administers and oversees Federal assistance to three freely associated states (FAS): the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), and the Republic of Palau (Palau). The territories are an integral part of the fabric of America, and the freely associated states, while independent countries, are uniquely interwoven with the United States in terms of a shared history, ongoing partnership, and a shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific. Each of the territories and freely associated states are unique, yet their economies are all small, isolated, and dependent on one or two main sources of income. The Office of Insular Affairs has an important role to play in understanding the nuances of the Federal government’s interrelationship with each of the insular areas. OIA facilitates coordination of Federal policies and programs to best serve the insular areas and utilizes its own assistance programs to fill gaps not fulfilled by other Federal programs to meet the needs of the insular areas. OIA programs are purposely designed to offer the flexibility needed to respond to urgent, immediate needs in the insular areas.