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Obscure Country Profile #9: Nauru

By Sarah Stodola

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In this age of instant communication; cell phones, email, blackberries, live and broadcasts, the very idea of being cut off from the rest if the world seems like an impossibility. But that is exactly what happened to the tiny island country of Nauru early this year when its telephone system collapsed completely. No one from the outside world was able to communicate with residents of the island unless a ship landed on its shores. No one from the outside even knew who the president of Nauru was anymore, this being a particularly unstable time, both politically and economically, for the country of just over 10,000.

Sounds like a Vonnegut novel, right? Sadly, this scenario was no work of fiction for the people of Nauru. This catastrophic loss of contact with the world was just another mishap in an increasingly mishap-prone republic.

For a while, at least, such an event seemed impossible in Nauru, as well. Until the past few years, the republic boasted one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, thanks to a large reserve of phosphate deposits. But with the phosphates almost gone - predicted to run out completely by 2005 - the nearly century-long honeymoon is coming to an end and the badly-managed country has been thrown into chaos.

The landscape of Nauru is just as barren as the economic situation. Because of the phosphate mining, all but the very edges of the island has been turned in to a desolate, moonlike setting. The only livable area in the country is the ring around the edge.

Oftentimes when countries are left in a predicament such as Nauru's current one, they turn to tourism to save them from destitution. And Nauru has the geographical elements in place for success in the tourism industry; tropical climate, sandy beaches, South Pacific location. But with just one hotel and no such thing as a tourist visa (only business visa's are available), the infrastructure for such an industry is years away from being in place.

Perhaps in an act of desperation, Nauru turned to offshore banking. Like most small nations who allow the unfettered exchange of money on their shores, a large amount of money that eventually supported terrorist campaigns and money-laundering schemes found its way to the tiny island. This year the United States, a nation that no tiny country wants to feel the wrath of, insisted that Nauru shut down its banking operations or face international sanctions.

In another attempt at acquiring alternative income, Nauru accepted roughly 1,000 asylum-seekers in return for foreign aide. This move, too, proved disastrous when the mostly Iraqi refugees took over the camp after Nauruans abandoned their posts.  It doesn't appear that the refugees were necessarily hostile or rebellious, but rather that they began running the camp for themselves simply because no one else was stepping up.

So, once again Nauru is back to the drawing board in terms of reinventing its economy.  It makes one wonder what's next: a Nike factory, or perhaps some call centers?

Of course, some experts predict that because of global warming, the entire island will be under water before too many more decades have passed, in which case this is all a moot point, isn’t it.

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Sarah Stodola is the Managing Editor of Me Three.  She can be contacted at [email protected].

© 2003 Me Three