Samoa’s Tourism Sector Plan (2022–2027) and national development frameworks emphasise revitalising tourism with a focus on sustainability, resilience, and inclusive growth. Challenges to achieving sustainable tourism include limited financial resources and technical expertise for micro and small businesses, inconsistent enforcement of policies, low awareness of potential business advantages, workforce shortages, and limited capacity to improve infrastructure.
The Sustainable Tourism Enhancement in the Pacific (STEP) Project, under the EU SWITCH-Asia Pacific Policy Support Component, provides a practical roadmap for advancing sustainable tourism across Pacific Island nations, including Samoa. Designed around the Pacific Sustainable Tourism Policy Framework and Standards, the STEP initiative emphasises Circular Economy and Sustainable Consumption and Production practices.
The Samoa Country Pathway seeks to accelerate the uptake of CE and sustainable consumption and production (SCP) practices in the tourism sector by addressing two central questions:
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How are CE and SCP principles currently reflected in Samoa’s Tourism Sector Plan and other policies, and what opportunities exist to mainstream and consolidate them across governance and implementation systems?
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How can national tourism standards for Samoa be aligned with the PSTS to support effective adoption of CE and SCP practices at scale?
