HONOLULU — State officials say most of the homeless people living in Kakaako are migrants from Micronesia and the Marshall Islands.
State Department of Human Services Director Pankaj Bhanot says hundreds of migrants covered by the Compact of Free Association live in a camp community locally known as “the village.”
The agreement allows citizens from the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau to live in the United States. During 1946 to 1958, the United States used the islands as nuclear testing sites.
Hawaii News Now reports officials say it’s difficult to determine exactly how many COFA migrants are in Hawaii.
Bhanot says more than 1,100 COFA migrants are homeless across Hawaii. He says 933 of them are on Oahu.