[?]aiian Immigrant

Attacks Cockroaches

lanks to the Royal Air Force an immigrant from Hawaii, itonga may soon be largely 'ed of the cockroach pest. 1955 the Cook Islands Depart t of Agriculture imported by from Hawaii, via Fiji, a ship t of wasp-like insects known as ulex compressus. tese insects keep effective rol of the cockroach pest in aii, but very few of the Cook ids’ consignment survived the ley. st October arrangements were e with the RAF air officer in nand at Christmas Island >se DC3’s have been making y regular calls at Rarotonga i the British Pacific nuclear 3 tests commenced) to bring her consignment of the insects that route. All but one of shipment of 25 insects arrived y, and were released, te in January, for the first , an ampulex compressus nest found which contained a cock ti with the eggs of the predator ;hed to its legs and abdomen, h indicated that the ampulex jressus is becoming established. it’s operating on the cock les according to plan. •wever, it is uncertain whether nest belonged to a survivor ;he 1955 importation, all of n were believed to have hed, or whether it belonged le latest batch. In any case, J are now hopes that the mt high incidence of cock les will be reduced.

The present cocoa price still shows a margin of profit—but Samoan cocoa-growers generally 5; av £,, decided not to purchase new Cadillac cars this season.

The export of bananas from Western Samoa to New Zealand has been worth approximately £1,000,000 Sterling per annum in recent times.

Now, two serious troubles have hit this large and flourishing industry.

New Zealand has decided that NZ cannot absorb more than be tween 800,000 and 900,000 cases of Samoan bananas per annum—and Samoa’s potential production is much greater than that. A lot of young Samoans of Samoa’s rapidly growing population have taken up banana production. So now Samoa’s new Minister for Economic Develop ment has been asked to inquire whether there is a market for Samoan bananas in Canada, the United States and perhaps Japan.

The idea is tinged with healthy optimism. Countless other banana growing countries have been think ing along the same lines. Fiji— before hit by hurricane and drought —was looking anxiously around for new banana markets.

But, worst of all, is the second problem the appearance in Western Samoa of a very infectious disease called bunchytop, which literally wipes out banana planta tions. Five years ago, bunchytop made its first appearance in a plantation at Lefaga, in Upolu.

Two years later, a survey showed that 40 per cent, of the bananas in Lefaga and Safata had con tracted the disease.

Now. when it is spreading like wildfire across the banana planta tions of Upolu, high officialdom is trying to do something about it; but the official entomologist has warned that banana production in Upolu could be halved by this disease within the next five or 10 years.

Anxious Search

With self-government just around the corner, the local men who expect to govern Western Samoa are looking around rather anxiously for sources of additional income.

The present combination of un happy circumstances suggests that they will be faced with a reduced rather than an expanded income.

In so many words; owing to conditions beyond their control, the Western Samoans, in relation to finance and production, are not yet ready for self-government—m fact, they could do with a little assistance from New Zealand and perhaps from some other country.

No doubt many hope that the Trusteeship Council mission, now arriving in Samoa for a survey, w take more notice of the economy and social outlook, and a little less notice of the politicians.