Samoa Airport Authority pays $1m Dividend to Government  

Apia, SAMOA – 27 March 2024 – The Samoa Airport Authority (SAA) this week presented $1millon tala dividend to government.

The cheque was presented by the Minister of Works, Transport and Infrastructure, Olo Afoa Fiti Vaai on behalf of Chairman and Board of Directors, General Manager, Management and Staff of the Samoa Airport Authority, to the Minister of Public Enterprises, Leatinuu Faumuina Wayne So’oialo.

The Dividend declared and approved by the Board of Directors represents 35% (SAT$2,324,264.25) of the Audited Net Profits of SAT$6,640,755 for the Financial Year ending 30 June 2023.

It is the first time since COVID-19 that SAA presented its Dividend to the Government as the Authority had experienced consecutive loss of revenues from 2020, 2021 and 2022. The effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Faleolo International Airport operations were completely shut down pursuant the State of Emergency in early 2020 until August 2022.

However, since the opening of Samoa’s borders in August 2022, SAA’s revenue gradually improved with the increase of incoming flights from Fiji, New Zealand and Australia and American Samoa.

Minister Olo Afoa Fiti Vaai reminded the Ministry of Public Enterprise, that the Government of Samoa through the Ministry of Finance, is withholding SAA’s revenue from the Upper Air Space Charges which represents 8% of SAA’s revenue.

SAA acknowledges with appreciation the support from the Government of Samoa, business partners, airline operators, airport tenants, stakeholders, World Bank Group, NZ Government Partnership, Board of Directors, Management and Staff who have contributed to sustain the development of SAA operations since post COVID-19.