Tracy Johnston, Senior Consultant, was engaged by the Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI) as a Tourism Development Specialist to assist the Republic of Marshall Islands (RMI) in developing a High-Level Sustainable Tourism Policy and Development Strategy to 2030. Tracy’s role focused on creating a practical and achievable plan that aligns with the RMI’s national strategic plan and responds to community priorities. Drawing on her prior experience in the RMI, including a past project in Bikini Atoll, Tracy travelled back to the RMI capital, Majuro, in February 2025 to validate the draft High-Level Policy and Tourism Development Strategy. This included one-on-one consultations, a group workshop attended by over 30 people in person and online, and presenting the draft strategy to the RMI President and Cabinet for their consideration.
The validation consultation offered stakeholders the opportunity to evaluate and refine the vision, goals, guiding principles, and strategic approach to achieve measurable results. Participants engaged in insightful discussions to assess implementation strategies and explore collaborative efforts to drive progress. Tracy’s approach combines global sustainable tourism principles with a deep understanding of local needs, ensuring the strategy delivers long-term social, cultural, environmental, and economic benefits to the RMI.
During the visit, Tracy also worked with the OCIT team to integrate relevant actions from the strategy into their business plan. This additional step, supported by PSDI, will ensure that OCIT-Tourism is well-positioned to drive the implementation of the strategy and establish a strong foundation for future development of the sector. The strategy is currently being finalised by PSDI and will be launched by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Commerce and their dedicated tourism department, OCIT, in the coming months.
