Samoan sights on new business

THAT business horizons in the South Pacific are changing was underlined in March when the government of Western Samoa sent its first ever investment promotion mission abroad to Australia.

The mission leader, Minister for Finance Tuilapea Sailele, was forthright in explaining to a representative group of Australian business leaders at a luncheon in Sydney why the mission had been launched, and why Australian had been selected as the target.

He said Samoa’s economy was largely dependent on agriculture for its survival, and there was very little manufacturing activity.

Tourism had gained momentum but there was still a lot of room for its development. The fact was that agriculture had “not performed all that well over the years”, and it had also been affected by the recent hurricanes. The result was that production, and thus Samoa’s foreign

exchange earnings, had fallen.

As neither agriculture or the public sector could absorb the increase in the number of people wanting jobs each year, the government saw the development of manufacturing and tourism as a means of increasing both export earnings and employment, Sailele said. There was great need for foreign capital as well as skilled people with the expertise and

marketing know-how.

Why aim at Australia?

“Because Australia is Western Samoa’s largest neighbour and we’ve had a long relationship on a government-to govemment level, but we feel that the average Australian, and the business community in particular, are not aware of us ... or that Western Samoa has maintained political stability since independence in 1962.

“We believe there is scope for Australian investment in Western Samoa in the form of light manufacturing industries and in the development of the tourism industry. Our Offshore Finance Centre is also an attractive proposition of those who might have surplus funds to invest.”

If any businessman at the Sydney launch, which was arranged by the South Pacific Trade Commission, had doubts about how manufacturing investment in Western Samoa might work out in practice, they would have been put to rest by the address from Peter Ray, managing director of Yazaki Australia, giving an enthusiastic account of the company’s experience in Samoa.

Peter told the group that Yazaki had first visited Western Samoa in November 1990 as part of a search for a suitable Forum island country, in which to establish an assembly plant or automotive electrical components. Having been involved in leveloping ventures in Europe, North America, Asia and dsewhere in Oceania, the Yazaki team fully expected to have o systematically schedule interviews and appointments at safe ntervals, “going through the tiresome process day after day” mtil there was an understanding.

To our surprise and delight,” Peter said, “we found that >eople in Western Samoa made time for special appointments ind, in one day, we were able to confer with the Department •f Labour, the EPC (the power authority), Telecom, the Post

Tradewinds

Office, the Central Bank, the Bank of Western Samoa, the Public Works Department and many private sector organisations as well. In all, 21 appointments and interviews in one day try doing that in Canberra, Sydney or Mel bourne!”

Peter said ministers and heads of departments were readily accessible and decision-making was facilitated. The government offered a significant range of investments aimed at minimising establishment costs and providing tax-free and concessional arrangements at least on a par with those offered elsewhere, and others that were

quite innovative.

He said there was no bureaucratic delay in processing any form of application to establish or run a business (Vazaki in Samoa operates as a branch of the Australian company), and a very flexible and friendly approach was always apparent. Yazaki gave the government “10 out of 10”.

As a result, he said, the company opened its Apia plant very swiftly, and as the end of its first year of operations approached,” we are satisfied we have made a sound decision.

Put simply, we are finding Western Samoa to be excellent... we are poised to expand the operation from 800 people to over 1000 once our new industrial complex is completed later this year. We have plans to further expand the scope of the business and to increase the workforce towards 1500 to ensure that required support services are in place, and this of itself will create further business opportunities in Samoa.”

As if his high praise of the government’s efficiency weren’t enough, Peter spent another five minutes expounding on the high qualities of the company’s Apia workforce.

“We have recruited, selected, inducted, trained and now promoted many people, and find them to be excellent,” he said.

“In some sense, our assembly operations are akin to handcrafting. It therefore follows that a nation with a heritage of basket-weaving and thatching will be very adept. Attributes such as dexterity, suppleness of limbs, basic body strength, good eyesight, superior binocular vision, superior acuity, accurate colour recognition, good co-ordination and body motor actions

are important.

“Equally so, factors such as daily attendance, punctuality, capacity and keenness to learn and to acquire skills are

important.”

He said Samoan workers had pride in achievement, accepted authority, were aware of the need to safely preserve materials, produce error-free outcomes, report suspected faults, practice error containment and self-inspection functions, and to co operate through “buddy checking” systems for all this was readily facilitated by people “whose racial upbringing is based upon harmonisation.”

Western Samoa could hardly have had better testimony as a place to invest in. □

Bill

Mccabe