China aid

Samoa women’s climate change action group receive assistance

The assistance was accepted by founding members of WICC, Fiame Naomi Mata’afa, Su’a Julia Wallwork and Lagipoiva Cherelle Jackson.

The assistance falls within the scope of work of WICC which is to strengthen the resilience of women through collaborative and meaningful actions across sectors.

China initiated the assistance as their way of assisting vulnerable women through better access to water.

'Beggars can't be choosers' in terms of aid - Samoa PM

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Tuilaepa commented on aid assistance being offered to Samoa and the Pacific Region.

Beggars could not be choosers and Samoa would take aid assistance from any country, he said.

It was good when countries competed to offer aid to countries like Samoa, the prime minister said.

Even the biggest and most developed countries depended on assistance from elsewhere, he said.

"America still needs assistance but they spend a lot of money on wars and spying on Russia."

     

Australia's Bishop calls Pacific leaders amid aid row fallout

Last week, international development minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells claimed China was lending on unfavourable terms and constructing "useless buildings" and "roads to nowhere."

The Senator's comments sparked a backlash from Pacific leaders and Beijing, with the Cook Islands finance minister calling them unfortunate, and Samoa's prime minister calling them insulting.

Beijing hit back, and a number of analysts have been quick to point out Australian-funded roads to nowhere and a general lack of attention to the region by Canberra, which has opened the door to China.

China backs major projects in Samoa

Tuilaepa quoted a figure of $US4 billion and told local media several projects would be funded from grants and loans provided by the Chinese.

He said two new bridges would be built including a replacement for the Vaisigano bridge on Beach Road, next to Sheraton Aggie Greys hotel.

The other bridge would span the Mali'oli'o river at Samalaeulu in Savai'i.

Meanwhile, the Japanese government-funded reconstruction of the Apia wharf is due to be completed in June.

China aid could destabilise Pacific

The flow of no-strings-attached foreign aid from countries such as China to Pacific island nations could destabilise Australia's neighbourhood.

That's the view of a new report from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute released on Monday.

Author Joanne Wallis argues the influx of aid and investment from non-traditional external powers such as China runs the risk of destabilising recipient states.

China likely to team up more on aid to Pacific

An expert on China's foreign aid programme, Denghua Zhang, said the Te Mato Vai project in the Cook Islands was helping China learn about aid delivery and monitoring.

According to his research, about four percent of China's total aid spend goes to Oceania, most of that in soft loans for new roads and other infrastructure.

Mr Zhang said China was increasingly teaming up with traditional donor countries and agencies like the UN Development Programme and it saw the Pacific as a good testing ground for such co-operation.