The promises
- Kept
A Ministry of Family Affairs
Ministry of Family and Social Affairs in operation from 1 July 2026.
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- Promised
- Rename the Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development as a Ministry of Family Affairs and Social Development and refocus it on families. Announced 12 July 2025; no cost or date given. 1
- What happened
- Parliament passed the District Development Bill on 12 March 2026; the same law renames the Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development as the Ministry of Family and Social Affairs. 2 The ministry says the realignment took effect on 1 July 2026, with district development moving to the new Samoa District Development Authority. 34 A handover event marking the end of the former ministry was held on 1 July 2026. 5 Three new assistant chief executives for the ministry were announced on 1 October 2026. 6
- Impact on families
- A ministry exists under the promised name and functions. No measured change in family safety, violence reports or access to services has been published; the ministry's first annual report would show whether services changed and not only the name. 4
- Cost
- Not costed; a renaming and realignment of an existing ministry, with no separate budget line published for the change.
- Verdict for families
- Doesn't reach aiga
- Can it be done?
- Doable
- Long term
- Too early to tell
- Who deserves the credit
-
This government's decision
The renaming and realignment were this government's own decision, written into its District Development Act 2026 and carried out by the existing ministry's staff from 1 July 2026. 245 The services, staff and the 2018 family-violence recommendations the ministry is meant to act on all predate it; no new programme or budget line came with the name. 74
- Who gains
- No family gains yet; women, children and victims of violence would gain if the ministry turns the 2018 inquiry's recommendations into services. 7
- Who pays
- Nobody pays directly; the risk is a year of reorganisation and new senior appointments while services stand still. 6
- Assessment
- The ministry exists under close to the promised name, with district development moved out to a separate authority, so the promise is kept and costs little to keep up. 34 Whether it helps families depends on services, not the name: the Ombudsman's 2018 family-violence inquiry made 39 recommendations, and no report yet shows the new ministry delivering more of them. 7 A ministry aimed at families, women and children is the right shape for a service that reaches the poorest households, but a restructure can also cost months of staff change; the first annual report is the test. 6
Sources (7)
- FAST Party Manifesto Centres on the Family Unit
- Parliament passes DDP Bill
- MFSA – Ministry of Family and Social Affair
- About Us – MFSA
- A new era begins at the Ministry of Women, Community & Social Development
- Three new ACEOs for the Ministry of Family & Social Affairs
- State of Human Rights Report 2019: How far have we come?
- Under way
Act on drugs, domestic violence and online abuse
Drug campaign, raids and a prevention programme have started; nothing yet on online abuse and no outcome figures.
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- Promised
- Treat illegal drugs, domestic violence, abuse of women and girls and abusive language on social media as family problems, to be tackled through family-focused prevention and stronger law enforcement. No programme, budget or date was given at the 12 July 2025 launch. 1
- What happened
- **Drugs.** On 8 October 2025 police launched a 12-month 'Say No to Illegal Drugs' campaign with Australian Federal Police support; no funding amount was reported. 2 Police reported 20 raids, 55 people charged and 100.98 grams of methamphetamine seized between 29 January and 26 May 2026. 3 Police confirmed 14- and 15-year-olds among more than 100 drug arrests from January to 21 April 2026. 8 By September 2026 police reported 228 people arrested for drug offences since December 2025, across all eight urban districts of Upolu, with Vaimauga 4 the highest. 7 Police began testing their own staff: three employees were dismissed after positive drug tests, reported 8 September 2026. 4 In June 2026 Parliament debated mandatory drug tests for MPs; the Prime Minister said he had been tested first and that Cabinet would consider a separate law for testing MPs. 6 **Violence and abuse.** The Police, Justice and Family and Social Affairs ministries held the first meeting of a national taskforce on drugs and violence (PACT Samoa) on 17 August 2026 and agreed to develop a phased prevention programme. 9 On 9 September 2026 the Samoa Observer reported the launch of Lalaga Le Vā, a programme bringing ministries, families, villages, churches and schools together on drug and violence prevention. 5 **Online abuse.** No measure aimed at abusive language on social media was found in the research.
- Impact on families
- Charges and seizures measure police activity, not whether drug use, violence or abuse fell. 3 No published figures yet show a change in domestic violence reports, drug prevalence or the number of families made safer; police and court statistics for 2025/26 against 2024/25 would show it. 5
- Cost
- Not costed; the drugs campaign is Australian-supported with no amount reported, and police services spending was SAT$19.7m in 2025 (SBS).
- Verdict for families
- Good for aiga
- Can it be done?
- Doable
- Long term
- Mixed long term
- Who deserves the credit
-
Shared credit
The raids, charges and staff drug tests are police and customs work that was already building before this government: in June 2025 the caretaker police minister announced stronger sea monitoring, detection dogs from New Zealand and a US Coast Guard partnership, and Customs seized 1,835 grams of methamphetamine on 4 September 2025, before Laʻauli took office. 1213 The 'Say No to Illegal Drugs' campaign is Australian-supported; what this government added is the drugs-and-violence taskforce (PACT Samoa) and the Lalaga Le Vā programme, which bring existing programmes, data and referral pathways under one umbrella. 295
- Who gains
- Families in the eight urban districts where arrests are concentrated, and any village reached by Lalaga Le Vā, gain safer streets if the campaign cuts supply; no count of families reached exists. 75
- Who pays
- Taxpayers fund more policing and an overcrowded prison system; families of those charged, including a 14-year-old, pay the cost of an enforcement-first approach. 108
- Assessment
- Raids, drug tests and a prevention programme run inside existing police and ministry budgets with donor help, so the action is affordable and has started. 2911 Drugs and family violence fall hardest on low-income families, women and children, so action aimed at them is well targeted; but charges and seizures measure police work, not fewer harmed families, and arrests already reach 14-year-olds. 38 A January 2026 report put more than 100 people in a remand area built for 60, so enforcement without treatment and prevention stores up prison costs; nothing at all has been done on online abuse. 10 Most of the measured activity is routine police and customs enforcement with Australian support rather than a new government scheme; the taskforce and Lalaga Le Vā are this government's own, and neither has outcome figures yet. 1229
Sources (13)
- FAST Party Manifesto Centres on the Family Unit
- Australia supports the “Say No to Illegal Drugs Campaign” as foremost priority
- 20 raids, 55 charged
- Three police employees terminated after positive drug tests
- New multi-ministry programme launched
- Mandatory drug tests for MPs sparks heated debate in Parliament
- Vaimauga 4 Tops Arrests as Drugs Recorded in all Eight Urban Districts of Upolu
- 14 year old amongst drug-related arrests from January to April 2026
- POLICE, JUSTICE AND FAMILY AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS UNITE TO ADDRESS DRUGS AND VIOLENCE
- Overcrowded and inhumane, things need to change at Tanumalala
- Statistical Abstract 2025
- Crime drops but drug crisis worsens
- Samoa Customs Intercepts Nearly 2 Kilograms of Methamphetamine in Targeted Operation
- No sign yet
Review the laws on separation of powers
No review started; meanwhile courts, the IMF and the Law Society have questioned the executive's reach.
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- Promised
- Review the laws so that the executive, Parliament and the courts stay separate, in particular the relationship between the executive and the Speaker. Announced at the manifesto launch on 12 July 2025; no bill, cost or deadline was given. 1
- What happened
- **No review found.** As at 19 October 2026 Parliament's listing of bills and Acts shows no separation-of-powers bill. 2 A June 2024 Commonwealth Parliamentary Association benchmark report had already recommended that Parliament, not the executive, choose the Speaker, ideally by secret ballot; no government response to it has been published. 4 **What touched the executive-Speaker line instead.** In May 2026 the Speaker found grounds, on a motion the Prime Minister moved in the April sitting, to send three HRPP leaders (Tuilaʻepa Sailele Malielegaoi, Fonotoe Lauofo Pierre Meredith and Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi) to the Privileges and Ethics Committee over alleged defamatory and 'treasonous' conduct; the committee's report was due 20 October 2026. That is an inquiry, not a finding. 5 **Other changes to institutions since September 2025, none presented as part of the promised review.** Cabinet ended Police Commissioner Auapaʻau Logoitino Filipo's term from 10 October 2025; he said he expected it and linked it to the court cases involving the Prime Minister, which is his belief, not an established fact. 67 The Prime Minister said in January 2026 that his choice of Mauga Precious Chang as interim Attorney-General rested on trust; the Public Service Commission said on 24 February 2026 that she was the only applicant who met the advertised criteria and that the appointment followed Article 41 of the Constitution. 89 On 9 September 2026 the court dismissed HRPP MP Lealailepule's challenge to the Attorney-General's decision not to appeal the Prime Minister's acquittal. 10 A new Controller and Auditor-General was sworn in on 18 August 2026, and former Supreme Court judge Vui Clarence Nelson was appointed Ombudsman for six years from July 2026 on Parliament's recommendation. 1112 The Central Bank Amendment Bill 2026, which would separate the Governor from the board chair, passed its second reading on 21 August 2026 and went to committee; HRPP and independent members voted against it. 13 **Independent findings on the executive's reach.** The IMF said in April 2026 that an earlier draft of the Central Bank bill could weaken the Governor's autonomy, with a shortened term and broad grounds for dismissal, and in September 2026 that amendments should reinforce independence; it did not endorse the tabled text. 1415 The Samoa Law Society said on 1 October 2025 that the Prime Minister holding the Police and Attorney-General portfolios while facing a criminal case was a significant potential conflict of interest; it welcomed his pledge to let the court process run. 16 On 9 September 2026 the court found that, as a minister before 2025, the Prime Minister had directed a senior officer to investigate an opponent without the Police Commissioner's knowledge, calling it 'foolhardy and unconstitutional' but short of the threshold of criminality. 17 The Prime Minister's ban on the Samoa Observer from his press conferences, in place since November 2025, was still in force on 2 October 2026. 318
- Impact on families
- No measured impact. Nothing has changed in how the Speaker is chosen or in how the executive and Parliament relate, so there is no effect to measure. A completed review with published recommendations, or an amendment to the Standing Orders or the Constitution, would be the test. 24
- Cost
- Not costed; a law review is drafting and consultation work inside existing Attorney-General and Parliament budgets.
- Verdict for families
- Doesn't reach aiga
- Can it be done?
- Doable
- Long term
- Too early to tell
- Who gains
- Nobody yet; a review that kept the executive out of the Speaker's chair and police operations would protect every family's access to independent courts and Parliament, as the court's September 2026 finding shows the need. 17
- Who pays
- Families pay in trust: the Law Society and the IMF both asked for safeguards that the government has not published, and the opposition and press face inquiries and bans while the review has not started. 161518
- Assessment
- A review costs little and the government has the majority to pass whatever it recommends, so the promise is doable; the obstacle is will, not money. 2 The record since September 2025 runs the other way: the one institutional law advanced, the Central Bank bill, drew IMF warnings on independence, and the court found the Prime Minister's earlier intervention in a police matter unconstitutional. 141517 The Police Commissioner's early exit, the Attorney-General chosen on 'trust', the 'treason' referral of three opposition leaders and the press ban are facts; the claims that they were political are allegations the government denies, and the PSC says the appointment followed the Constitution. 689518 Separate courts and an independent Speaker are what protect ordinary families from those in power, so a genuine review would be good; until a text exists, and while power has moved toward the executive, the direction is unclear.
Sources (18)
- FAST Party Manifesto Centres on the Family Unit
- Bills, Acts and Regulations – Parliament of Samoa
- Samoa Observer remains banned
- Samoa: Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures – Final Report
- Opposition Figures Face Parliamentary Investigation
- Cabinet ends term of Samoa's Police Commissioner
- Samoa's Police Commissioner exits role before contract ends, says he expected it
- Appointment of Interim Attorney General based on Trust, says PM
- PSC says Attorney General's appointment in accordance with the statutory framework
- Court dismisses Lealailepule's application for a judicial review
- A New Chapter Begins: Faamoetauloa Takes Oath as Controller & Auditor General
- Ombudsman – Office of the Ombudsman
- Central Bank Amendment Bill 2026 passes 2nd reading and moves for Committee review
- IMF warns Samoa reforms could undermine Central Bank independence
- IMF Executive Board Concludes 2026 Article IV Consultation with Samoa
- Law Society Raises Conflict Concerns Over PM's Portfolios
- Court Upholds AG Decision, Rebukes Political Interference, Recognises Harm to Lealailepule
- Samoa Observer ban remains, Government says
- No sign yet
A national stock exchange
Nothing announced since the campaign.
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- Promised
- Set up a national stock exchange. No cost or date given. 12
- What happened
- No action found. The 2026/27 budget address, published 27 May 2026, does not mention a stock exchange, and no bill, licence or operator has been announced as at 19 October 2026. 3
- Impact on families
- None; no exchange exists. A licensed exchange with listed companies and trades would show delivery. 3
- Cost
- Not costed; no budget line, bill or operator has been named.
- Verdict for families
- Doesn't reach aiga
- Can it be done?
- Not realistic
- Long term
- Too early to tell
- Who gains
- Owners of the few companies large enough to list, and brokers, would gain a way to raise and sell capital; no family benefit has been identified. 2
- Who pays
- Nobody yet; if the exchange were built on provident-fund money, members' retirement savings would carry the risk of the listed firms. 5
- Assessment
- Samoa's economy is SAT$3.582 billion and shrank 1.6% in the year to June 2026; an exchange needs companies willing to list, a securities law and regulator, and savers with spare money to buy shares, and the government's own 2026/27 budget names none of them. 43 A legal shell could be created, but a working market in an economy this small is not realistic within the term. The IMF's July 2026 call for stronger governance and oversight of public financial institutions points, in our reasoning, to the real risk: that provident-fund savings become the only buyers. 5
Sources (5)
- FAST Party Manifesto Centres on the Family Unit
- Samoa election: Political parties make big promises on health, welfare and economy
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Gross Domestic Product – June 2026 Quarter
- 2026 Article IV Consultation for Samoa: IMF Staff Concluding Statement
- No sign yet
Economic zones and digital finance markets
No zone or digital-finance market announced; only general digital policy work.
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- Promised
- Develop economic zones and digital-finance markets. No cost or date given. 1
- What happened
- No economic zone or digital-finance market has been announced. The 2026/27 budget address, published 27 May 2026, does not create one. 2 The Ministry of Communications ran a 'Towards a Digital Samoa' workshop on 8 and 10 September 2026 on digital public infrastructure, which is general digital policy, not the pledged market. 3
- Impact on families
- None yet. A designated zone with investors, or a licensed digital-finance market, would show delivery. 2
- Cost
- Not costed; no zone, site, concession or budget line has been named.
- Verdict for families
- Doesn't reach aiga
- Can it be done?
- A stretch
- Long term
- Too early to tell
- Who gains
- Foreign and large domestic investors would gain tax and land concessions; workers would gain only if the zones bring jobs, and no jobs figure was promised. 1
- Who pays
- Taxpayers pay for concessions and infrastructure, and families lose the revenue if investors pay less tax than ordinary businesses; Parliament's own 2026 Act ending international-company tax exemptions shows the cost of such breaks. 5
- Assessment
- Zones usually mean tax holidays, land and infrastructure for investors; Parliament's 2026 Act removing tax exemptions for international companies takes effect on 1 January 2028, which cuts the other way, and the economy of SAT$3.582 billion offers a small market to attract them. 54 A zone could be legislated within the term, but investors, serviced land and a digital-finance regulator are each a stretch, and the budget shows only general digital policy work. 23 The question is who the zone serves: tax-free status for foreign investors costs the budget unless it brings jobs at fair wages, and none has been specified.
Sources (5)
- FAST Party Manifesto Centres on the Family Unit
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Towards a Digital Samoa
- Gross Domestic Product – June 2026 Quarter
- Miscellaneous (Removal of Tax Exemption for International Companies) Amendment Act 2026
- No sign yet
Revenue from carbon credits
Samoa says it is interested in selling credits; no sale or revenue reported.
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- Promised
- Pursue Samoa's revenue from unclaimed carbon credits. Devpolicy and RNZ reported FAST promising a $1.5 billion carbon-credit market, without saying which currency; Talamua's launch report gives no figure. The reports disagree on whether an amount was promised. 126
- What happened
- Samoa's third Nationally Determined Contribution, dated October 2025 and posted by the UN climate body in January 2026, says Samoa is interested in selling carbon credits to more developed countries. No market, sale or revenue has been reported as at 19 October 2026. 3
- Impact on families
- No revenue received. A signed credit sale or a carbon-revenue line in the budget would show it. 3
- Cost
- No cost to the budget; the $1.5 billion revenue Devpolicy and RNZ reported, if in tala, is more than a year of government revenue (SAT$1,056.4m in FY2025/26) and about 42% of GDP.
- Verdict for families
- Doesn't reach aiga
- Can it be done?
- Not realistic
- Long term
- Too early to tell
- Who gains
- Customary landowners and the budget would gain if credits sold; today nobody gains, as no sale exists. 3
- Who pays
- Nobody yet; if credits are sold cheaply, village landowners lose the value and foreign buyers keep the emissions claim. 3
- Assessment
- Samoa's climate submission says only that it is interested in selling credits; no buyer, price, registry or rules exist, so $1.5 billion, more than the government's whole yearly revenue, is not a realistic figure. 345 Modest sales of forest or ocean credits are possible once international rules settle, and the money would help if it reached villages that own the land; selling credits also hands Samoa's emissions reductions to foreign buyers, so the long-term effect depends on terms not yet written.
Sources (6)
- FAST Party Manifesto Centres on the Family Unit
- Gearing up for the 2025 Samoan general election
- Samoa's Third Nationally Determined Contribution
- Government Finance Statistics – June 2026 Quarter
- Gross Domestic Product – June 2026 Quarter
- Samoa election: Political parties make big promises on health, welfare and economy
Projects in this area
- Delayed
Savai'i courthouse and judges' residence
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- What it is
- A courthouse for Savai'i was budgeted at SAT$17m for a start in 2024/25; ground was broken in Salelologa on 8 May 2026 and no completion date has been published. 12
- Planning
- The 2024/25 budget estimated the project at SAT$17m, allocated SAT$5m and expected construction to start that year. 1 At the May 2026 groundbreaking the Prime Minister described a SAT$16m project funded from government revenue, and Ah Liki Construction, Apia Lua Construction and New Era Construction were named for construction; award values and the selection method were not given. 2 The 2026/27 budget allocates SAT$4m to the first phase of the courthouse and judges' residence. 3
- Result
- Not built. Work started about a year later than the 2024/25 budget planned, and only SAT$4m of a SAT$16m to SAT$17m project is funded for 2026/27, so the rest falls on later budgets. 123 The sources do not say why the estimates differ. The project was budgeted under Fiamē's government; the current government broke ground and named three builders. 12 Savai'i litigants gain only when the court opens; until then the money goes to builders whose contract values are unpublished. 23
- Cost
- SAT$17m (2024/25 budget) or SAT$16m (groundbreaking); figures disagree
- Funded by
- Government of Samoa
- Visibility
- Budgets and the groundbreaking report name the firms but do not reconcile contract values with the total project cost, and no selection method has been published. 23
Sources (3)
- Budget Address 2024/2025
- $16M courthouse project in Savai‘i
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Delivered and working
CHOGM 2024 hosting, venues and accommodation
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- What it is
- Samoa hosted the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting from 21 to 26 October 2024 after budgeting SAT$40m for it; venues were assessed and hotels such as Lava Hotel renovated for the event. 1256
- Planning
- Government budgeted SAT$20m, then another SAT$20m in the 2024/25 budget of May 2024 for catering, accommodation, accreditation, security, health, IT, transport and venues. 1 Published awards include Vodafone Samoa (SAT$98,000, accreditation system), MESL Consultants (SAT$115,000, condition assessment of meeting venues) and Samoa Stationery and Books (SAT$2,693,546, police uniforms for 2023/24 and CHOGM). 2
- Result
- The meeting was held. WHO reports medical clinics at 14 meeting venues and 17 hotel and accommodation sites. 3 The statistics bureau counted 3,069 business and conference visitors in October 2024 and attributed the high number to CHOGM; that is not a count of delegates or a measure of return. 6 New Zealand's July 2024 estimate of about SAT$40m (NZD23.7m) in government hosting costs was a pre-event figure, not a final bill. 7 Hosting was Fiamē's government's decision; New Zealand's support was a NZD15m activity on which it spent NZD11.9m. 14 Contractors and uniform suppliers were paid and hotels such as Lava Hotel invested in upgrades; no net tourism return has been published. 25
- Cost
- SAT$40m planned government contribution; NZ spent NZD11.9m of NZD15m
- Funded by
- Samoa and development partners including New Zealand
- Visibility
- The award register, budgets, a WHO account and New Zealand's evaluation give partial costs. No single final government outturn has been published. 124
Sources (7)
- Additional $20 Million Allocated to Samoa’s CHOGM Preparations
- Tender Awards | MOF Samoa
- Health emergency preparedness and response planning ensured a healthy outcome for CHOGM
- Samoa Strategic Evaluation: Phase 2 Final Report
- Lava Hotel gears for CHOGM
- International Arrival Statistics October 2024
- Samoa: budget & economic update - July 2024
- Delayed
National digital identification system
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- What it is
- A national digital identification policy was launched on 29 September 2026; the systems supplier had not been chosen, with a request for proposals expected in November 2026, and mass registration is scheduled for 2027. 234
- Planning
- The World Bank's procurement strategy assigns US$12m to a national identification system within the US$21m Samoa Finance Sector Resilience and Development Project, including US$7.6m for the identification and civil registration systems. 1 The Bureau of Statistics held an early market engagement session in October 2026 and expects to issue the request for proposals in November 2026. 3 The 2026/27 budget appropriates SAT$200,000 for national identification mass registration. 5
- Result
- No IDs issued yet. Mass registration is planned for 2027. 2 An earlier World Bank-funded ID component, added to a connectivity project in August 2019, closed on 31 December 2022 after its procurement and enrolment phases were cancelled; the Bank rated achievement of that digital-government objective negligible. 6 The National Digital Identification Act 2024 and the World Bank project's preparation date from Fiamē's government; the current government launched the policy and is running the procurement. 134 Families gain a usable ID only when a supplier is chosen and the system runs, and the cost of running the registry will fall on the budget; that is our reasoning. 13
- Cost
- US$12m within a US$21m World Bank project; SAT$200,000 2026/27 appropriation
- Funded by
- World Bank and government budget
- Visibility
- The World Bank breakdown, SBS timetable and procurement notice are public. The systems contract and coverage are not. 123
Sources (6)
- Samoa Finance Sector Resilience and Development Project (SFSRDP): Project Procurement Strategy for Development (PPSD), draft, August 2024
- Samoa National ID – Samoa Bureau of Statistics
- Samoa: Samoa National Digital Identification System (NDIDS) EME Event
- National Identification Policy Launch
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Implementation Completion and Results Report: Pacific Regional Connectivity Program: Phase 3 - Samoa
- Delivered and working
One Government Portal
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- What it is
- A single government website, mygov.gov.ws, had its soft launch on 31 October 2025; its cost, developer and usage have not been published. 1
- Planning
- The ministry's announcement names the Public Service Commission and the communications ministry as co-leads, with the Prime Minister's and finance ministries contributing; the developer and selection process were not published. 1
- Result
- The portal is live as a central directory of government information and services and a training resource for public servants; the ministry said online submission and receipt of applications would come in the next phase. No transaction counts or usage have been published, so it saves families no trips yet. 1 It launched about six weeks after the change of government on 16 September 2025, so most of the work predates the current government; that is our inference, as the ministry does not say when work began. 1 The 2026/27 budget address lists the portal launch separately from the World Bank's Digitally Connected and Resilient Samoa project. 2
- Cost
- not published
- Funded by
- Government of Samoa
- Visibility
- The launch was announced. Cost and measured results were not. 1
Sources (2)
- Samoa One Government Portal
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Delayed
Digitally Connected and Resilient Samoa
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- What it is
- A World Bank broadband and e-government project approved in October 2024 and effective from 3 February 2025 had recorded zero new broadband users and zero new online services by December 2025. 12
- Planning
- Implemented by the communications ministry and the Office of the Regulator, with the Ministry of Finance as executing agency; individual network contracts are not published in the cited sources. 2 Approved on 18 October 2024 with a scheduled close of 30 October 2029. 1
- Result
- The World Bank's January 2026 status report called implementation slower than expected, noting the new government was settling in, with US$1.34m of US$20.35m disbursed and every results indicator still at zero on 2 December 2025; its targets include 35,000 new broadband users, 20 villages passed with fibre and four government services online by 2029. 1 The project appraisal document says the fibre network will connect ministries, 166 schools, 11 rural medical centres and 51 district centres. 4 On 9 October 2026 the ministry launched connections at four Savai'i primary schools under a last-mile connectivity project supported by the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity and Japan's JTEC, saying more than 1,000 students would benefit; the launch report does not mention the World Bank project. 3 The project was approved and became effective under Fiamē's government with World Bank money. 12 Rural families gain only when schools and clinics are connected; the grant is financing Samoa must account for. 14
- Cost
- US$20.05m World Bank grant at approval (US$20.35m revised); no tala figure published
- Funded by
- World Bank (IDA)
- Visibility
- The World Bank publishes finance, targets and dated results. Final outcomes are not yet available. 12
Sources (4)
- Implementation Status & Results Report: Digitally Connected and Resilient Samoa Project (P180807), Seq No 3
- Digitally Connected and Resilient Samoa Project - Office of the Regulator
- Official Launch of the Last Mile Connectivity Project in Savaii
- Project Appraisal Document: Digitally Connected and Resilient Samoa Project (P180807)
What FAST did in 2021 to 2025
- 2021 to 2025Not kept
FAST's 2021 manifesto promised to repeal the three 2020 Land and Titles laws. In office it amended the Land and Titles Act in 2022; in January 2023 the justice minister said the government would amend rather than repeal, and a further amendment followed in 2025. 12
Sources (2)
- The L.T.C. Acts: Did the F.A.S.T. Government betray its voters?
- Bills, Acts and Regulations – Parliament of Samoa
- 2021/22 budgetUnclear
FAST's first budget raised the Audit Office allocation by 6% and the Public Service Commission's by 71%, while the Ombudsman's fell in real terms; the 2022/23 budget cut the Audit Office and PSC allocations in inflation-adjusted terms and proposed an Ombudsman increase. 1
Sources (1)
- FAST or slow? Integrity and anti-corruption in Samoa
- October 2022Unclear
FAST's majority suspended HRPP leader Tuilaʻepa and secretary Lealailepule from Parliament for two years without pay. The Supreme Court ruled the suspensions unconstitutional and void on 4 July 2023; the Speaker said he would appeal. 12
Sources (2)
- Samoa supreme court overturns suspension of opposition leaders, citing constitutional breach
- Speaker to appeal decision that suspension of 2 Opposition MPs was unconstitutional
- 13 June 2024Unclear
Launched Samoa's first National Anti-Corruption Policy, for 2024/25 to 2028/29. 15 It proposes a National Anti-Corruption Agency, with the Ombudsman's office taking the role until a standalone body is set up, and lists the agency as up and running among its targets; its SAT$70,000 establishment estimate excludes operating costs. 2 The 2026/27 budget address says the government will advance the policy with Public Service Commission guidance; no Act creating the agency appears in Parliament's listing as at 19 October 2026. 34
Sources (5)
- Samoa marks anti-corruption milestone with launch of first Policy
- National Anti-Corruption Policy 2024/25–2028/29
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Bills, Acts and Regulations – Parliament of Samoa
- “The vision is simple – a Corrupt Free Samoa”
- 7 April 2025Unclear
The Constitution Amendment Act 2025 took effect on 7 April 2025, removing the 2020 exclusions of Supreme Court jurisdiction from Article 70, creating a Land and Titles Court of Appeal and placing Supreme Court judges nominated by the Chief Justice on it; the separate Land and Titles Courts stayed. 12 HRPP challenged the Speaker's right to vote in the 36 to 16 passage; the Supreme Court upheld it on 9 May 2025 and the Justice Ministry began implementation in May. 32 The ministry said about 100 appeals filed since 2021 were waiting; it did not say how many had been resolved. 2
Sources (3)
- Constitution Amendment Act 2025
- Ministry of Justice implements 2025 Constitutional Amendments
- Samoa Supreme Court says Speaker could cast deliberative vote
- 17 February 2026Unclear
Fiamē's government commissioned a forensic audit of HRPP-era projects in 2021; the contract went to BDO New Zealand and work started in 2023. 2 On 17 February 2026 the Revenue Minister said BDO had covered 13 of 30 listed projects, citing missing receipts and Cabinet records, and that a Cabinet select committee had referred the report to the Attorney-General and police. 12 The minister said about SAT$1 million was passed by Parliament for the audit; the Prime Minister had said in January that over SAT$1.5 million was approved. The two figures disagree. Missing records and a referral are not findings that anyone committed a crime. 12
Sources (2)
- Forensic Audit has major issues says Minister of Revenue
- Forensic Audit Report under Police and Attorney General's investigation