The Samoan Tourism Sector is the first in the country to pilot the ‘Every Policy Is Connected’ (EPIC) tool.
The EPIC tool is an online app that replaces the Excel too and it identifies the gaps in Sector Plans which can be improved such as aligning issues and actions with indicators to ensure they are measurable.
Chief Executive Officer, Faamatuainu Lenata’i Suifua said, “We are in the process of finalising the Samoa Tourism Sector Plan for the next five years, and this is a timely opportunity to apply the EPIC Tool with support from UN-ESCAP.”
“This is a vital tool to assist in conducting our work, especially during these difficult times where efficiency is needed to produce opportunities for our Tourism Industry members and continue to prepare for when borders do open up,” Faamatuainu added.
The United Nations – Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific is facilitating the initiative for Samoa and member states to support efforts in developing comprehensive and integrated indicator frameworks and national policies.
Spearheaded by the Samoa Bureau of Statistics and supported by the Ministry of Finance, the trial runs through 14 sectors in the country, with the first trial being the tourism sector as carried out by the Samoa Tourism Authority.
A series of workshops was conducted at LAVA Hotel in Apia over the past three weeks, facilitated virtually by UN-ESCAP to support the process with an application of the upgraded tool in order to review the status of the draft Tourism Sector Plan.
The workshop brought together the expertise of STA and partner agencies, such as the Samoa Hotels Association, Savai’i Samoa Tourism Association, Aleipata Tourism Association.
Officials from the Samoa Bureau of Statistics and the Economic Planning and Policy Division of the Ministry of Finance, with emphasis on the Government agencies were also part of the workshop.