Samoa and New Zealand commemorated 60 years since the signing of their Treaty of Friendship with the arrival of New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern yesterday.
Ardern is accompanied by Christopher Luxon, Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage Carmel Sepuloni, and Minister of Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio.
The two-day visit to Samoa reflects the special nature of the relationship between the two countries as defined in that Treaty.
The treaty between the two countries was signed in 1962 two months after Samoa gained independence, after being previously administered by New Zealand since 1920.
Ardern’s visit follows Samoa's Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mata'afa’s first official bilateral trip to New Zealand in June since she took office last year.
The NZ Prime Minister and her delegation were welcomed in an Ava ceremony at Robert Louis Stevenson Museum in Vailima yesterday.
Ardern acknowledged the cooperation of her delegation which represented various party members whom she travelled with, which has shown a relationship that is not based on political party but of two countries' history and commitment to one another.
She added that New Zealand would consider restarting education, scholarship and skills exchanges with Samoa as the two countries marked the official reopening of its’ international borders since the pandemic.
"There's a large number of people to people exchanges that we can now resume and that we're very keen to."
A bilateral meeting with the two female leaders and a Cabinet meeting with the NZ delegation is being held today to discuss issues such as climate change and Covid-19 recovery.
Photo Talaia Mika Caption: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her delegation arrive in Samoa