world
factbook
Samoa
New Zealand occupied the German protectorate of Western Samoa at the outbreak of World War I in 1914. It continued to administer the islands as a mandate and then as a trust territory until 1962, when the islands became the first Polynesian nation to reestablish independence in the 20th century. The country dropped the "Western" from its name in 1997. In the late 2000s, Samoa began making efforts to more closely align with Australia and New Zealand. In 2009, Samoa changed its driving orientation to the left side of the road, in line with other Commonwealth countries. In 2011, Samoa jumped forward one day - skipping December 30 - by moving to the west of the International Date Line so that it was one hour ahead of New Zealand and three hours ahead of the east coast of Australia, rather than 23 and 21 hours behind, respectively.

geography

location

Oceania
13.35° S, 172. 20° W
Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand

area

2,831 sq km
land
2,821 sq km
water
10 sq km

land boundaries

0 km

coastline

403 km

climate

tropical; rainy season (November to April), dry season (May to October)

terrain

two main islands (Savaii, Upolu) and several smaller islands and uninhabited islets; narrow coastal plain with volcanic, rugged mountains in interior

elevation

lowest point
Pacific Ocean
0
highest point
Mount Silisili
1,857

natural resources

  • hardwood forests
  • fish
  • hydropower

land use

arable land
2.8 %
permanent crops
7.8 %
permanent pasture
1.8 %
forest
60.4 %
other
27.2 %

population distribution

about three-quarters of the population lives on the island of Upolu

people

population

  • 203,774
  • 185
    global rank

nationality

  • Samoan(s)
    noun
  • Samoan
    adjective

ethnic groups

Samoan
96 %
Samoan/New Zealander
2 %
other
1.9 %

languages

  • Samoan
    Polynesian; official
  • Somoan/English
  • English
    official
  • other
  • unspecified

religions

Protestant
54.9 %
Roman Catholic
18.8 %
Mormon
16.9 %
Worship Centre
2.8 %
other Christian
3.6 %
other
2.9 %
none
0.2 %

birth rate

  • 19.6
    per 1,000 population
  • 77
    global rank

death rate

  • 5.4
    per 1,000 population
  • 187
    global rank

urban population

17.9 %

major urban areas

  • Apia
    pop. 36,000

life expectancy

  • 74.7
    total population
  • 128
    global rank
71.7
male
77.7
female

adult obesity rate

  • 47.3%
    percent of adults
  • 8
    global rank

government

country name

    conventional

  • Independent State of Samoa
    long form
  • Samoa
    short form

    local

  • Malo Sa'oloto Tuto'atasi o Samoa
    long form
  • Samoa
    short form

government type

parliamentary republic

capital

Apia
13.49 S, 171.46 W

independence

national holidays

  • Independence Day Celebration
    1 June

legal system

mixed legal system of English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts with respect to fundamental rights of the citizen

age of suffrage

21

flag description

red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side quadrant bearing five white, five-pointed stars representing the Southern Cross constellation; red stands for courage, blue represents freedom, and white signifies purity

national colors

  • red
  • white
  • blue

national anthem

"O le Fu'a o le Sa'olotoga o Samoa" (The Banner of Freedom)

economy

overview

The economy of Samoa has traditionally been dependent on development aid, family remittances from overseas, tourism, agriculture, and fishing. It has a nominal GDP of $844 million. Agriculture, including fishing, furnishes 90% of exports, featuring fish, coconut oil, nonu products, and taro. The manufacturing sector mainly processes agricultural products. Industry accounts for nearly 22% of GDP while employing less than 6% of the work force. The service sector accounts for nearly two-thirds of GDP and employs approximately 50% of the labor force. Tourism is an expanding sector accounting for 25% of GDP; 132,000 tourists visited the islands in 2013. The country is vulnerable to devastating storms. In September 2009, an earthquake and the resulting tsunami severely damaged Samoa and nearby American Samoa, disrupting transportation and power generation, and resulting in about 200 deaths. In December 2012, extensive flooding and wind damage from Tropical Cyclone Evan killed four people, displaced over 6,000, and damaged or destroyed an estimated 1,500 homes on Samoa's Upolu Island. The Samoan Government has called for deregulation of the country's financial sector, encouragement of investment, and continued fiscal discipline, while at the same time protecting the environment. Foreign reserves are relatively healthy and inflation is low, but external debt is approximately 45% of GDP. Samoa became the 155th member of the WTO in May 2012, and graduated from least developed country status in January 2014.

GDP

1,137,000,000 USD
2017

agriculture products

  • coconuts
  • nonu
  • bananas
  • taro
  • yams
  • coffee
  • cocoa

budget

  • 237,300,000
    revenue (USD)
  • 276,800,000
    expenditures (USD)

communications

telephones

    fixed lines

  • 8,454
    total subscriptions
  • 194
    global rank

    mobile cellular

  • 124,211
    total subscriptions
  • 190
    global rank

broadcast media

state-owned TV station privatized in 2008; 4 privately owned television broadcast stations; about a half-dozen privately owned radio stations and one state-owned radio station; TV and radio broadcasts of several stations from American Samoa are available (2019)

internet

.ws
country code

    users

  • 67,662
    total
  • 33.61
    % of population
  • 190
    global rank

energy

electricity access

100%
2016

transportation

air transport

    national system

  • 1
    registered air carriers
  • 270,908
    annual passenger traffic

    airports

  • 4
    total
  • 1
    paved

roadways

1,150 km
total length

military

This entry doesn't have any available military data.