Government and power in Samoa

Who leads Samoa, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Unitary parliamentary republic.

Who leads Samoa?

• Head of state: Tuimalealiifano Vaaletoa Sualauvi II (Head of State of the Independent State of Samoa)
• Head of government: Laaulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao Fosi Schmidt (Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Independent State of Samoa)
• Foreign minister: Laaulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao Fosi Schmidt

Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.

Governance scores

The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.

Voice and accountability

Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.

Political stability and absence of violence

Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.

Government effectiveness

Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.

Regulatory quality

Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.

Rule of law

Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.

Control of corruption

Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.

Official bodies that hold power in Samoa

Government

• Government of Samoa
  Cabinet decisions, press releases and ministry news.

Parliament

• Legislative Assembly of Samoa
  Hansard, bills, acts, committee reports and members of Parliament.

Elections

• Office of the Electoral Commissioner
  Electoral roll information, election results and candidate lists.

Courts

• Judiciary of Samoa (Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration)
  Information on the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court, District Court and Land and Titles Court.

Public audit

• Samoa Audit Office
  Controller and Auditor General reports on public accounts and public bodies.

Ombudsman

• Office of the Ombudsman / National Human Rights Institution
  Complaint investigations, state of human rights reports and annual reports.

Public contracts

• Ministry of Finance procurement policies and support
  Government procurement policies, guidelines and procurement support for Samoan public bodies.

Government below the national level

• Traditional villages (286 in the CLGF count): Village fono of matai titleholders; matai titles are conferred by extended families
• Non-traditional (urban) villages (56, mostly around Apia): Government representatives (sui o le malo)
• Village representative (pulenu'u, also called sui o le nu'u): Chosen by the village and paid by government

How local power works in Samoa

Places in Samoa

• Official statistics for Samoa

Sources

• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Central government spending (GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 808094019f50…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Tax revenue (GC.TAX.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08c94b750f31…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Births registered (SP.REG.BRTH.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f8d443034ba7…)

Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.