West Samoa's Economic

Prospects 'Excellent'

From FELISE VA’A in Apia

There was a mixed Press reaction in Apia to Western Samoa’s record budget of 7 million tala (about $NZ5,600,000) presented to parliament by Minister of Finance, Tofa Siaosi, on November 11.

The Pacific Star praised the new government for what it termed “an imaginative budget”, at the same time urging that priority should be given to needs of the urban popula tion and employment. The Samoa Times criticised the exports situation and financial matters generally.

Mr. Tofa Siaosi told parliament that despite a considerable trade gap there had been a surplus of $472,353 in the first nine months of the year.

Tourism, sales of postage stamps and coins and remittances from abroad, were largely responsible for the sur plus.

Overseas reserves of the govern ment and the Bank of Western Samoa had risen by over $450,000 since January 1, and at September 30, totalled just over $4.9 million. This figure excluded Copra Board and Government Superannuation Fund Reserves invested in New Zealand, totalling $2.2 million; the country’s

gross overseas reserves, therefore, totalled over $7.1 million, or the equivalent of almost one year’s im ports.

He said provision was being made for total expenditure of $7,036,611 for maintenance, capital, statutory and development requirements during 1971. Receipts for the same period were expected to come to $6,698,156, inclusive of grants. There would, therefore, be a planned deficit of $338,455.

The deficit had been “unavoidable”, explained the minister, because of urgent requests from all departments for more funds. Of the total increase of $218,192 in the estimates, $179,400 was attributable to the departments of health and education, which pro vided essential social services. “Any drastic curtailment of expenditure re quired by them may cause serious consequences in a possible deteriora tion of services required by our

rapidly growing population,” he said.

He said that the $6,698,156 with which the 1971 budget was to be financed was derived mainly from Customs duties on imports and ex ports. Customs receipts were ex pected in 1971 to drop by more than $148,000 due to an expected decline in earnings from cocoa, but as against this there would be increases in timber royalties from the new opera tions of Potlatch Forestries.

He said as well as the drop in cocoa exports, copra exports had dropped during the first nine months of 1970 and banana exports showed only a slight increase.

Grants for 1971, he said, would include $120,000 from the New Zealand Aid Programme, $60,000 from the Western Samoa Trust Estates Corporation and $40,000 from the Copra Board.

But he said that future prospects for economic development were “excellent” and he was confident of Samoa’s strength and he believed the Samoan living standard would im prove.