Greenland considers economic diversification – but at what cost?

Greenlanders headed to the polls on Tuesday, for an election that normally wouldn't get anywhere near the global headlines. But the island, an autonomous part of Denmark, has already been in the news for months, due to President Donald Trump's repeated calls for the United States to take ownership of it.

Denmark pays an annual grant to Greenland's devolved government to fund healthcare, education and social services. But there are economic challenges when it comes to making a living. Its scattered settlements are often separated by hundreds of kilometers, and so traveling and doing business can be difficult.

And Greenland's biggest business by far is the business of fishing.

The sector employs around 15 percent of all working people, and accounts for around 80-90 percent of the island's total export income. Greenland has fisheries agreements with the Faroe Islands, Norway and Iceland, and a general agreement with the European Union.

Royal Greenland is one of the big fishing companies, still wholly owned by the government of Greenland. 

Ken Jakobsen, the factory manager of one of its processing plants in the capital Nuuk, told CGTN that the company operates 38 large-scale factories and many smaller ones in cities and towns across Greenland. His plant in Nuuk produces nearly 2,000 tonnes of fish, cod and halibut each year, but Jakobsen says it's a medium-sized operation compared to others.

While the sector is dominated by large private and publicly owned companies, there's a small army of self-employed fishermen. Lars Mathaeussen is one of around 4,000 working in the industry. At 69 years of age, he's partly retired. He says he still needs to work a few days each week but things are becoming more difficult.

"Fishing can't be fully sustained today because some companies' operating costs, like Royal Greenland, are so high," he tells CGTN. "But fish prices aren't increasing for us, because the management is so expensive. There's a focus on restructuring to make sure that all fishing operations stay within Greenland."

Capitalizing on minerals

Many local politicians are now saying that in order to grow the economy and to possibly survive as an independent state in the future, Greenland should develop new industries, to employ more people and create more wealth.

And that's why investors, global companies – and Trump – are becoming excited about minerals. 

Greenland has a few operational gold mines. But several political parties are calling for a vote on independence from Denmark to allow Greenland to capitalize on mining copper, graphite and zinc.

The current minister in charge of natural resources, Naaja Nathanielsen, is concerned about U.S. interest, and the potential impact of large-scale mining on communities and the environment.

"We cannot develop the sector without foreign workers coming in," she tells CGTN. "How do we utilize that foreign workforce best? How do we accommodate them? 

"We are trying to be mindful of what kind of sectors would be suitable for a country with a small workforce, and where we are very reliant on foreign workers."

Meanwhile, authorities are already warming up another fledgling industry – tourism. In June, direct flight services will run for the first time from New York – home of Trump Tower.