For small island states like Samoa, external funding plays an outsized role in shaping environmental priorities and outcomes.

The Samoa Country Portfolio Evaluation, conducted in 2007, reviewed 15 years of GEF support to Samoa, one of the first Pacific island countries to receive GEF funding since the pilot phase. Using document review, interviews, field visits, and portfolio analysis of 18 projects, the evaluation assessed the relevance, efficiency, and results of GEF support within Samoa’s development priorities and the GEF mandate.

It finds that GEF projects have been strongly aligned with Samoa’s environmental policies, with enabling activities establishing national strategies and community-based initiatives delivering tangible biodiversity and climate results. GEF financing, which provides about 60 percent of Samoa’s external environmental funding, has built institutional capacity, though sustainability is at risk where government follow-up support is limited.

While national capacity and the Small Grants Programme have improved efficiency, long project cycles, high transaction costs, and uneven Agency engagement continue to limit Samoa’s ability to access and implement GEF resources effectively.