Samoa: Request for Disbursement Under the Rapid-Access Component of the Exogenous Shocks Facility - Staff Report; Press Release on the Executive Board Discussion; And Statement by the Executive Director for Samoa (Electronic book text)

1. The earthquake and tsunami of September 29, 2009, has been the worst natural disaster since Samoa s independence in 1962. The death toll has risen to 143, while almost 5,300 people some 21/2 percent of Samoa s population have lost their homes, many of them in poor rural areas. There is widespread structural damage to infrastructure, although the main government buildings and the airport in Apia have remained intact. Beyond the human cost, the physical damage is estimated by the UNDP and World Bank at US$60 million (over 10 percent of GDP), but the cost of infrastructure rehabilitation, strengthening social safety nets, and investing in disaster protection, including resettlement, is expected to be significantly higher."