20 More Districts Receive $1.8M for Development Projects

By Lagi Keresoma/

Apia, SAMOA – 4 March 2026: Out of the 50 districts eligible for the $1.8 million under the District Development Project, more than 20 have so far received the funds and have started implementing their delayed projects including the Back-to-School assistance package.

The Minister responsible for the project, Moefa’auouo Julius Ah Kui Tafunai confirmed that as of last Friday, only 6 districts received the funds having completed required reports and as of yesterday, more than 15 districts have been confirmed.

He said whilst all the 50 districts signed the Funding Agreements a week ago, the delay is with the Ministry of Finance process and policies that must be satisfied before the funds are released.

23 districts yet to submit reports
The Minister confirmed that 23 districts have yet to submit their final reports under the previous Government and if those reports ae not submitted by the end of June, the Ministry will then investigate how the funds were used.

He said unused funds were supposed to be returned to the Ministry and these need to be highlighted in the district reports.

The Minister said when he took over the portfolio of the Ministry of Women, Community & Social Development, he stopped the project for the month between October and November 2025 due to some discrepancies noted.

The project was re-opened on 12 January 2026 and so far, twenty-three (23) districts have yet to submit their final reports.

He also clarified that if a District Council have records that their staff continued to work during the two months of October/November, then the Chairperson needs to address it and not demand backpay without proof.

The $1.8m is the final payment of the funds allocated under the project for the first five years 2021/2025 and must be used within the current financial year.

The Government decided to use a major part of the $1.8m allocating $150 tala per person for the Back-to-School assistance package and the balance to be allocated for district development projects.

The funding for the District Development Project will be increased to $2m tala per district in the 2026/2027 budget.