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GOVERNMENT STRATEGY
The Samoan
government's first Statement of Economic Strategy in 1995 laid the
foundation for a partnership between the g o v m e n t and the
private sector, and focused on economic recovery with appropriate
macroeconomic policies and a structural reform program. The
government efforts resulted in a strong economic recovery with an
average GDP growth rate of 4.7 percent per annum between years
1995-2002. However, growth slowed down sharply in 2O01 / O2, with
real GDP increasing by only 1.9 percent. The government's latest
economic strategy for the three year period, 2002-2004, is presented
in the Strategy for the Development of Samoa (SDS), 2002-2004. The
Strategy is focused on maintaining the stable macroeconomic
environment established over the last few years, improving education
and health standards, continuing to nurture an enabling environment
for the private sector, improving infrastructure services, enhancing
opportunities in the agricultural and tourism sectors, and
continuing significant civil service restructuring. The civil
service restructuring is running parallel to the project-supported
transport sector reforms which led to the formation of the Ministry
of Works, in place of the former Public Works Department, in April
2002, and to its major downsizing on October 2, 2002. In January
2003, Cabinet approved a new organizational structure for government
under the ongoing Public Sector Reform Program (PSRM). Within this
structure, the MOW is merged with all infrastructure and transport
to form the Ministry o f Works, Transport, and Infrastructure
(MWTI).
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