MARIJAMPOLE COUNTY: LITHUANIA'S GOOD COUNTRY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VILNIUS 000996

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/NB, EB/CBA
WARSAW FOR FCS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL ECON PGOV LH
SUBJECT: MARIJAMPOLE COUNTY: LITHUANIA'S GOOD COUNTRY
LIVING


1. SUMMARY: Top officials in one of Lithuania's most
sparsely populated counties told the Ambassador that the
local economy in Marijampole is doing well. Unemployment is
low and skilled labor talented, but a U.S. employer finds it
hard to fill jobs. The students in this rural region study
English with hopes of U.S. travel, study, and employment.
The county hosts a national military logistics unit, some of
whose troops have deployed to support allied objectives in
Iraq and Afghanistan. Local officials recognize they need
to attract more investors if they hope to retain their
current level of prosperity and good, clean, country living.
END SUMMARY.


2. The Ambassador visited the southern city of Marijampole
on September 13 as part of his continuing outreach program
to Lithuania's regions. The Ambassador spoke with local
television and print media and both local and national press
carried stories on the visit.

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ECONOMY DOING WELL, BUT EMIGRATION A PROBLEM
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3. Governor Albinas Mitrulevicius of Marijampole County
(population 168,000) and Mayor Vidmantas Brazys of the City
of Marijampole (population 48,000) told the Ambassador that
the region's economy has done well in the years since
independence. Unemployment in this mostly rural county of
only 6.2 percent is significantly less than the national
average (10.2 percent). Along Mariampole's clean, tree-
lined streets were numerous construction sites and signs of
economic activity. The governor said that the planned Via
Baltica motorway, which will connect the three Baltic
countries and Poland and will run through Marijampole, will
be an economic boon for the county. The mayor grumbled a
bit about the EU, noting that many in this agricultural area
are disgruntled that farmers in other EU countries like
Germany receive larger subsidies than they do. That EU red
tape hampered the distribution of aid to some victims of
recent flooding in the region also made local residents
unhappy. Both officials noted that emigration is a problem
and that too many talented Lithuanians from the region have
left to seek their fortunes elsewhere, especially in Ireland
and England.

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HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS WANT TO STUDY IN THE U.S.A.
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4. The senior class of a local high school, famous for
producing some of the country's most renowned linguistic
scholars, poets, and several of the architects and defenders
of Lithuania's independence, told the Ambassador of their
keen interest in the United States. In exceptional English,
they asked him about opportunities for Lithuanians to study
and work in the United States and inquired about American
students in Lithuania, American university curricula, U.S.
salaries, and U.S. basketball. One student asked about
Hurricane Katrina.

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U.S. QUALITY AUTO PARTS MADE IN MARIJAMPOLE
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5. The Ambassador toured the Marijampole facility of
Waukegan, Illinois-based Peer Corporation. The plant both
forges and machines auto parts, mainly alternator rotors,
for U.S. and European automobile manufacturers. Peer
purchased an existing set of buildings in 1999 and began
production in 2001 with five employees. The company has
invested LTL 17 million (USD 6 million) in the facility and
has doubled production every year, now employing 80 people.
Peer's Vice President Leo Algminas told the Ambassador that,
although the company produces high quality products, a
recent 30-percent hike in supply costs threatens Peer's
profits. Algminas also lamented that Peer's higher-than-
average wages do not seem to be stopping a region-wide brain-
drain. Peer and other employers are already having trouble
filling job vacancies. For next year, the company wants to
triple this year's output of LTL 3.4 million (USD 1.2
million),but is having difficulty hiring the 15 skilled
employees it needs to do so.

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LOGISTICS BATTALION: FROM MARIJAMPOLE TO AFGHANISTAN
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6. The Ambassador visited the Grand Duke Vytenis Main
Support Logistics Battalion in Marijampole. This unit,
eight of whose members currently serve in the Lithuanian-led
Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Ghowr Province,
Afghanistan, is the logistical backbone of the entire
Lithuanian military. The Ambassador commended the soldiers
for their service to their country and thanked them for
Lithuania's participation in coalition missions in
Afghanistan and Iraq. Touring the base, the Ambassador
reviewed some of the battalion's capabilities, including its
portable water-purification system, and the battalion showed
the Ambassador equipment of the type the PRT is using in
Afghanistan.

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COMMENT
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7. Many parts of rural Lithuania suffer from obvious poverty
and neglect, but Marijampole, with its small-town charm and
apparently healthy economy, does not appear to be share
those problems. The area's leaders will have their hands
full, however, trying to figure out how to keep youth from
heading toward EU or U.S. jobs. The officials we spoke with
seem to believe that the Via Baltica will put Marijampole
squarely on the EU map and enhance the area's economic
attractiveness. It might, however, simply make it easier
for the county's youth to drive west.
MULL