The scorecard
2025 promises · FAST under Laʻauli, since 16 September 2025. 54 promises, one square each. Tap a square to open the promise.
The 2021 scorecard
2021 promises · FAST under Fiamē, 24 May 2021 to September 2025. 40 promises; that term is over, so these labels are final.
Pensions and price cuts came fast; a Savaiʻi hospital, health insurance and a fraud office did not.
Fiamē's first budget, on 14 September 2021, raised the pension from SAT$160 to SAT$200 a month, started a disability benefit and cut power, water and selected government fees by 20% 1. The IMF found the cuts cost over 1% of GDP a year and were not well targeted 2. The Salelologa hospital, health insurance for everyone, voting from overseas and an independent anti-corruption body were not delivered by the end of the term 3456. The 2020 Land and Titles Court laws were amended rather than repealed, until a 2025 change to the Constitution restored the Supreme Court's review 7.
The verdict
Pensions rose; tax, hospital and school promises stalled.
Of 54 FAST promises tracked, four are kept and ten under way; the kept ones are the pension and disability rises and a renamed ministry, and the money that reached families came through schemes Fiamē's government set up 12. The tax cuts, VAGST relief, free hospital care, free schooling, the SAT$50 million funds for power, water and farming and the SAT$100 million hotel fund have no budget line, while real GDP fell 1.6% and the budget runs a stated SAT$215.9 million cash deficit 31. District money, Cabinet-picked district chairs, the Samoa Observer ban and the Central Bank bill move money and decisions toward the governing party, and Samoa's press-freedom rank fell 15 places 4567.
What changed for families
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SAT$500
a month for people aged 70 and over
Pensions went up
About 13,000 people aged 65 and over are paid SAT$300 a month, people aged 70 and over SAT$500 from July 2026, and 2,875 people with disabilities SAT$300 1. This is the clearest money to reach families since the election; the pension scheme and its SAT$200 base rate came from Fiamē's 2021 budget, and the disability benefit began under Fiamē in 2021 at SAT$100 23.
Sources (3)
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Budget Address 2021/2022
- Beijing +30 Samoa National Report: Implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA) 2024
-
0 of 4
tax promises acted on
Tax promises have not moved
None of FAST's four tax promises has moved: the tax-free threshold is still SAT$15,000, the top and company rates 27%, and VAGST 15% on food 12. Prices were 5.8% higher in June 2026 than a year before 3.
Sources (3)
- Rates – Ministry of Revenue
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- 2026 Article IV Consultation for Samoa: IMF Staff Concluding Statement
-
SAT$22.50
still charged a night in hospital
Hospital care is not free
Hospital care is not free: the surveyed charge is still SAT$22.50 a night, and children aged 12 and under and people aged 60 and over were already exempt before the election 12.
Sources (2)
- Consumer Price Index, September 2026: CPI tables (Table 3, average retail prices of selected commodities)
- Samoa Health Workforce Development Plan 2020-2026
-
SAT$18m
school grant that already existed
Free schooling is the old grant
Free schooling rests on the SAT$18 million grant that existed before the promise; schools were still waiting for their full 2025/26 grant in May 2026, and parents are still asked for registration fees of up to SAT$150 123.
Sources (3)
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Schools to receive funds soon: PM
- Government to Impose Strict Enforcement of Free Education for All Children of Samoa
-
0 of 51
districts paid at the new SAT$2m rate
District money: budgeted, mostly unpaid
Every district is budgeted SAT$2 million a year, SAT$102 million in all, but no district had been paid at that rate by 15 October 2026, Cabinet appoints the council chairs, HRPP's claim that only FAST members were chosen is before the Supreme Court, and the IMF says the programme should not expand until its execution, transparency and accountability improve 12354.
Sources (5)
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Vaimauga 4 to receive $2 Million for District Development Projects
- What Samoa’s District Development Act 2026 means for district funding?
- 2026 Article IV Consultation for Samoa: IMF Staff Concluding Statement
- HRPP Claims DDC Appointments Were Politically Driven as Government Defends Selection Process
-
SAT$1.84
of the SAT$2.24 wage rise set under Fiamē
Most of the wage rise came earlier
The minimum wage is SAT$5.24 an hour from July 2026, but SAT$1.84 of the SAT$2.24 rise since 2024 was set under Fiamē's government; this Cabinet added 40 sene and scheduled SAT$6.05 for July 2028 12.
Sources (2)
- Minimum wage increases by 40 cents
- Minimum Wage is $5.84 and does not move to $6.05 until July 2028
-
SAT$20m
spent on a ferry that never entered service
A SAT$20 million ferry that never sailed
The Aurora V ferry, bought under Fiamē's government, never entered service: the purchase was cancelled in January 2026 on safety grounds and the Prime Minister says about SAT$20 million was spent; the contract and the choice of designer were never published 12.
Sources (2)
- Aurora V for lease once its finished with renovations
- PM says Government will move to Lease or Sell the $20 million Failed Ferry Purchase
-
SAT$0
of the promised SAT$50m funds
The SAT$50 million funds do not exist
No SAT$50 million has gone into EPC, water, renewables, export farmers or manufacturers, and no SAT$100 million hotel fund exists; the 2026/27 budget put SAT$100 million into crisis fuel and SAT$15 million into a lending facility shared across three sectors instead 1. Blackouts continued: an Upolu outage on 31 July 2026 hit hospitals, businesses and traffic 2.
Sources (2)
- Minister of Finance Hon Mulipola Anarosa Budget Address 2026/2027
- Blackout hits Upolu
By area
Every promise, grouped by what it touches.
-
Cost of living and tax
None of the four FAST tax promises has moved, VAGST is still 15% on food, and the May 2026 budget kept every rate unchanged.
4 promises
+ 1 from 2021 -
Pay and jobs
The minimum wage reached SAT$5.24 an hour in July 2026, but SAT$1.84 of the SAT$2.24 rise since 2024 was set by Fiamē's government, and public-service pay is still with the Remuneration Tribunal.
2 promises
+ 3 from 2021 -
Pensions and benefits
The senior and disability benefits were raised and paid, the child benefit is funded but pays nothing until January 2027, and the pregnancy allowance and low-income top-up are in neither budget.
10 promises
+ 5 from 2021 -
Districts and villages
SAT$102 million a year is budgeted and the councils are in law, but no district had been paid at the SAT$2 million rate by 15 October 2026, Cabinet picks the chairs, and the IMF says the programme under-spends.
2 promises
+ 3 from 2021 -
Health
Hospital care is not free, children aged 12 and under and people aged 60 and over already had fee waivers before the election, medicines ran short in 2026, and the Salelologa hospital became a paused private project on leased public land.
6 promises
+ 4 from 2021 -
School
Tuition still rests on the SAT$18 million grant that existed before the promise, the grant ran late in 2026, no school serves free lunches, and no pre-school or mission teacher has moved onto the government payroll.
6 promises
+ 3 from 2021 -
Power, water and fares
No SAT$50 million went into EPC, water or renewables; the 2026/27 budget put SAT$100 million into crisis fuel instead and blackouts continued in 2026.
3 promises
+ 3 from 2021 -
Transport and infrastructure
One SAT$16.8 million cargo ferry is in service and Maota airport reopened, the end-2026 airline date was withdrawn, the Aurora V ferry bought under Fiamē never sailed for Samoa and the Prime Minister says about SAT$20 million was spent, and no SAT$300 million for Samoa Airways is in either budget.
6 promises
+ 7 from 2021 -
Land and custom
10,000 acres of STEC land moved between government bodies in 2026; none has been returned to villages or families.
1 promise
+ 3 from 2021 -
Farming and fishing
No SAT$50 million fund exists for export farmers or manufacturers; what runs is a SAT$15 million Development Bank facility shared across three sectors, and exports keep falling.
4 promises
+ 2 from 2021 -
Family abroad
No diaspora office, new consulate or overseas ballot exists; every visa change in force was decided by Australia or New Zealand, and no agreement negotiated by this government has been found.
4 promises
+ 2 from 2021 -
Clean government
A Ministry of Family and Social Affairs opened and a drugs campaign started, but no separation-of-powers review, stock exchange, economic zone or carbon-credit sale has followed.
6 promises
+ 4 from 2021
How Samoa is doing
-
Economy and jobs
-
Daily life
-
Society
-
Government and the law
-
Development and the world
The national plan
Pathway for the Development of Samoa FY2021/22 to FY2025/26, July 2021 to June 2026: 88 indicators the plan set itself, each against its own baseline and target.
- 28Target met
- 53Off track
- 6No result published
- 1Not comparable
Projects
- 11Delivered and working
- 2On track, not finished
- 8Delivered with problems
- 12Delayed
- 1Abandoned
- 5No visible progress
The most serious failures
- Abandoned Aurora V inter-island ferryAbout SAT$20m spent, according to the Prime Minister; earlier price reports differ
- Delivered with problems District Development ProgrammeSAT$51m (2024/25); SAT$91.8m (2025/26); SAT$102m (2026/27) appropriated
- Delivered with problems SAT$150 back-to-school district paymentSAT$32.25m scheme; SAT$24,053,100 paid to 160,354 people by 6 May 2026
What the labels mean
Each promise gets two labels: was it kept, and is it good for families. Numbers like 1 link to the source for that sentence. How we judge →
Was the promise kept?2025 promises
2021 promises (FAST under Fiamē)
That term is over, so these labels are final.