Samoa Economy

'Agriculture used to be the backbone of Samoa's economy' says Farmers Association

The latest Agriculture and Fisheries Sector Plan obtained by the Samoa Observer in January said the industry made up close to a quarter of Samoa's GDP in 1994/1995 and was down to just 10 percent by 2020/2021.

Farmers Association chair and economist Afamasaga Toleafoa said agriculture had been in decline for a long time.

"Agriculture used to be the backbone of Samoa's economy," Toleafoa said.

"Food security was very high, food dependence was very low and exports were mostly around 80 percent agriculture. It's the reverse now."

Samoa economy continues to slide

The Samoa Bureau of Statistics latest quarterly report shows the lowest quarterly period of output since March 2015, with the Gross Domestic Product for September 2021 at $459.1-million tālā.

The country's economic output dropped by 0.4 percent in the September 2021 quarter continuing the GDP drop, now in its eighth consecutive decline since December 2019.

Loss of tourism hits Samoan economy hard

The loss in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was heavily impacted by a complete loss of income to the country's tourism sector.

The latest economic update from the Central Bank of Samoa shows Samoa's annual GDP dropped to $US753 million in the year.

After January 2020, covid restrictions meant income from tourism plummeted to zero.

70 percent of jobs in the sector are estimated to be lost.

Samoa's finances have been cushioned by international aid funds of more than $US130 million.