Country Note: Samoa — geonode-gfdrrlab.org

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Title: Country Note: Samoa
Abstract: In 2012 Tropical Cyclone (TC) Evan offered a distressing reminder of Samoa’s exposure to natural hazards. TC Evan came only three years after the earthquake and tsunami of 2009, which affected 2.5 percent of the country’s population, causing 143 fatalities and associated economic losses equivalent to 20 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). The economic growth of Samoa has been impacted in the past few years by two major disasters: the tsunami in 2009 and TC Evan in 2012. Growth was also impacted by the global financial crisis. Overall GDP contracted by 5.1 percent following the tsunami in 2009, but it has gradually increased in subsequent years. Following TC Evan, real GDP declined by 0.4 percent. Growth in GDP rebounded to 2.2 percent in 2013/14 as the reconstruction program commenced (World Bank 2014). Samoa is expected to incur, on average over the long term, about SAT 23 million (US$10 million) per year in losses due to earthquakes and tropical cyclones.In the next 50 years, Samoa has a 50 percent chance of experiencing a loss exceeding SAT 255 million (US$110 million) and a 10 percent chance of experiencing a loss exceeding SAT 812 million (US$350 million) (PCRAFI, Country Risk Profile).

Publication Date: Feb. 1, 2015, 6 p.m.
Category: Geoscientific Information; information pertaining to earth sciences. Examples: geophysical features and processes, geology, minerals, sciences dealing with the composition, structure and origin of the earth s rocks, risks of earthquakes, volcanic activity, landslides, gravity information, soils, permafrost, hydrogeology, erosion
Regions: Samoa
Approved: No
Published: Yes
Featured: No
DOI: None
Attribution: None

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