Samoa government

The Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development received the assistance as part of UK’s Conflict, Stability and Security Fund Pacific programme, which is providing £2m in funding support across the Pacific in 2021-22.

Acting CEO for Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development in Samoa, Vitoria Crichton Lalomilo said, MWCSD is pleased to partner with the UK government through the Ending Violence in the Village (EVV) project, to increase awareness and promote discussion of social and cultural norms on ending GBV in Samoa.

Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa announced the approval of the decision last week. 

According to the Prime Minister, the new orders under the State of Emergency are effective from 22 November to 19 December 2021.

Fiame said some of changes that have been approved include bingo games resuming on Saturday nights and closing at 11pm.

“From Monday to Friday the closing hours for night clubs [and restaurants] has been extended to 1am while on Saturdays they will be closed by 12am.”

Minister of Tourism, Toeolesulusulu Cedric Schuster said, “The continued border closure remains to affect travel to Samoa and whilst efforts to continue to actively pursue domestic tourism have provided some level of business and relief for operators, the numbers in comparison to pre-Covid-19 are significantly lower and are unsustainable for the majority of tourism businesses,”

“The lack of visitors in these challenging times has impacted on tourism businesses financially as they continue to struggle to stay afloat with the continued financial obligations.”

Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata'afa said the latest lockdown was recommended by the National Emergency Operations Committee and approved by Cabinet.

The lockdown will not affect government offices and the business community will continue with business as usual.

The latest data released by Samoa's Ministry of Health shows a 95 percent of the eligible adults have had their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine and 70.5 percent have had their second dose.

The Minister of Customs and Revenue, Tuala Ponifasio, has been instructed to consult with the church ministers - as is required for any amendments to laws.

Removing the tax was an election promise by the Faatuatua I Le Atua Samoa ua Tasi, or FAST Party.

The law change in 2018 had sparked a feud with government and 30 ministers from the Congregational Christian Church were charged for refusing to what was dubbed income tax.

The tax was in fact on gifts given to the ministers by their congregations.

That is a recommendation in a new report on child nutrition by the United Nations.

The report titled “Fed to Fail?” highlighted the international dietary crisis of early life and was released by the United Nations Children’s Fund on September.

“Governments, parliaments and development partners must position young children’s diets as a national development priority, and include commensurate financial resources in their budgets and investments,” stated the report. 

The pair were stood down for two weeks after the government concluded it didn't have trust or confidence in them.

Both had defied the directions of the Supreme Court to re-open parliament on the 24th May and the FAST MPs swore themselves in on the grounds of parliament.

The Prime Minister, Fiame Naomi Mata'afa said for her MPs to properly transition into government they needed the public service to operate in an efficient, professional, effective and apolitical manner.

Photo file RNZ Pacific 

It aims to save about $US950,000 dollars by ending a long running practice of cabinet ministers getting new luxury SUVs on taking office.

The Samoa Observer said the Human Rights Protection Party government, which was voted out in April, had a policy of purchasing new four wheel drive vehicles for MPs at the start of each five year parliamentary term.

A fleet of 13 new vehicles would cost the country nearly $US one million dollars.

During a press conference held Wednesday, Fiame said last week was mostly taken up with clarifying the different budget provisions that have been made.

“I would like to acknowledge that our Treasury have in its usual work prepared an annual budget for the Year 2021-2022, and that is in place.”

Affairs while workers were overseas were 'not a major problem' the interim minister of labour Lautafi Fio Selafi Purcell said, but the numbers should be prevented from escalating, Newsline Samoa reported.

Lautafi said if the issue continued then his ministry would review the seasonal worker programme and only single workers may end up being recruited.

He said those who had affairs away from home had given the programme a bad name, but the government was copping the blame for breaking up families.