Samoan students in China, including those in the coronavirus infected Wuhan province, will not be evacuated according to the Samoa government.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs chief executive Peseta Noumea Simi said students would remain in Wuhan under the care of their universities, alongside more than 70 other Pacific students.
Ten Samoan students were studying in Wuhan but four left the province during the holidays and have not returned following advice not to.
Peseta said the situation remained carefully monitored and supported by the Samoa Embassy in Beijing.
The Chinese government was deploying human and financial resources to Wuhan to stop the virus from spreading further, she said.
"The advice to everyone is to be patient and not panic," she said.
The Samoa Observer reported a student in Wuhan saying it seemed safer to "ride out" the virus than to leave the city.
New Zealand and Australia are planning to fly their citizens out of China as a precautionary measure.