Samoa

Samoa's government is looking to place controls on alcohol advertising in a bill to be introduced to Parliament this year.

Proceeds from this weekend's Pasifika festival in New Zealand's capital will go to the Samoa measles response fund.

Samoa Sevens coach Gordon Tietjens says he's looking forward to arriving in Hamilton for the New Zealand Sevens next week, after the measles epidemic cast a shadow over the team earlier this season.

A proposed ban on styrofoam products in Samoa has been deferred for six months.

Samoa's government has been warned it needs to tighten its recruitment of seasonal workers because the country is losing skilled labour.

A former primary school teacher from Ti'avea is facing indecent assault charges related to four students in Samoa.

Samoa's health ministry says it did not authorise a $US14 fee that was being charged for immunisation records needed to enrol children in schools.

The Tautua Samoa party has started the year with a political campaign for next year's general election, which includes a call for an inquiry into the measles outbreak.

Samoa's measles epidemic has taken a severe toll on people's mental health, says a team providing support to affected families.

Samoa's Minister of Education has called for the sacking of a school principal and a teacher involved in allegedly leaking exam papers.

A team has spent four days on the Samoan island of Savai'i, providing resources and counselling to families affected by the measles epidemic.

The first lineup announcements have been made for a series of concerts in New Zealand, which aim to raise funds for the families of measles victims in Samoa.

A Samoan school teacher and her husband, who is an examiner, have been accused of leaking national exam papers.

An investigation into the suspended Commissioner of Prisons and Corrections in Samoa has been completed but is awaiting a legal opinion from the Attorney General.

Samoa's prime minister has ruled out an amnesty for parents whose children are yet to be fully vaccinated for measles.

A Samoan seasonal worker in Australia has died over the Christmas and New Year period.

The minimum wage increase in Samoa, which came into effect on 1 January, has been welcomed by the local association of manufacturers and exporters.

Two more people died from measles in Samoa over the New Year period.

One of Samoa's senior lawyers and a former Manu Samoa player, Loau Donald Kerslake, has been appointed a new District Court judge.

Samoa's Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi has officially closed the Fagali'i Airstrip.