Western Samoa

WITH a population of 161,000, Western Samoa offers some op portunities for small import substitution industries (paint and coconut cream are two cited by the South Pacific Trade Commission), and it already has one enterprise manufacturing knitwear parts that are sent to New Zealand for final as sembly into garments.

The country also has considerable tourist potential. The two hotels consid ered of international standard, the fabled Aggie Grey’s and the Tusitala, are both in central Apia, and airline experts feel the country needs hotels on beachfronts.

There are certainly good air services to the capital: Hawaiian fron Pago Pago, Po lynesian from Sydney and Aukland, Air New Zealand from Auckland and Air Pa cific from Fiji. The one great impediment is a reluctance on the part of many Sa moans to go down the tourist path. There is widespread concern that any major in crease in tourism would disrupt the tra ditional and religious life of the people.

A more minor problem is that there is no great tourist infrastructure; the appeal of the country is its considerable natural beauty, which attracts the mature travel ler rather than those holidaymakers who

seek plenty of diversions.

For the potential developer there are beautiful beach areas on the southern side of Upolu (on the opposite side of the is land from Apia) and at many locations on Savai’i. The Hawaiian Airlines link from

Honolulu via Pago Pago should lead to an upsurge of American visitors, since Sa moa is one of the better-known Pacific destinations.

Outside tourism, there are few oppor tunities for investment. Two thirds of the population is engaged in subsistence agri culture, and the main export commodities are coconut oil, copra, cocoa and taro. The main trading partners are New Zealand>

Tusitala Hotel is one of Western Samoa’s greatest tourism drawcards.

Australia, West Germany, the United States and American Samoa.

Almost all goods are imported; the 1986 import account of SUS47.I million was four and half times the total earned as ex ports. There is a SUS4O million foreign debt and the Western Samoan Govern ment relies heavily on aid, mainly from

Australia and New Zealand. Remittances from Western Samoans living abroad, mainly in New Zealand, also contribute significantly to the nation’s economy (SUS2S million in 1985).

Western Samoa provides incentives for foreign investors. There is a five-year tax holiday for new projects to process agri cultural products, factories hotels, fisher ies afforestation, film production and related industries. Waiving of tariffs and duties is also available.

The two trading banks are the Bank of Western Samoa (jointly owned by the Government and the Bank of New Zea land) and the Pacific Commercial Bank (the Bank of Hawaii with Westpac).