Samoa

The Samoan archipelago is situated in the Polynesian part of the Pacific. Migrants from south-east Asia settled in the islands more than 2000 years ago, and from there moved on to other parts of Polynesia further to the east. At the beginning of the 20th century, the island group was divided in two by the USA and Germany. The western part was attributed to Germany and came under the control of New Zealand in 1914. Western Samoa became the first independent Pacific nation in 1962. It changed its name to Samoa in 1997. Samoa consists of two large and four small islands. Land tenure is communal, according to Samoan custom. The economy is based on agriculture, fishing, tourism and some processing industry. Many Samoans have migrated, to New Zealand, Australia and the USA, which has resulted in a negative population growth rate. The Samoa Council of Churches groups together the two large Protestant churches, Congregational and Methodist, the Catholic Church, the Anglican Church which is part of the diocese of Polynesia, and several smaller Pentecostal and other churches. The Samoan Evangelical Fellowship is affiliated with the WEA. There is also a large Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints (Mormons) in Samoa.