ABSTRACT
The growth of modern agriculture in the nineteenth century led to considerable demand for fertilizer. Guano deposits on a number of Pacific islands were exploited during the middle of the century, but many of these were soon depleted. The Germans assumed control of the tiny island of Nauru in 1888 with relatively little enthusiasm. It was an isolated, war-torn, and small island that produced only limited amounts of copra. Nauru became independent in January 1968, with Hammer de Roburt as its president. The Nauruans had achieved what no other small group of native peoples had been able to accomplish: they had gained control of a large mining complex on their territory as a completely independent nation-state. Development and expansion of the ventures took place in the face of increasing fuel costs and lax fiscal control and losses began to grow. The employment situation in Nauru has changed in a number of ways.
