Chinese Government cancels $11.5 million of Government of Samoa’s outstanding debt obligations (Linked to Project ID#64861)

In 2006, China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) cancelled the Government of Samoa’s outstanding repayment obligations related to five interest-free loans that it contracted during the 1980s. The aggregate value of the Government of Samoa’s outstanding debt obligations under these five loans was $11.5 million.

Additional details

One of the interest-free loans that was forgiven was for the construction of the Apia Sports Complex (see Project ID#64861). This loan was contracted during the 1980s. The other debts that were forgiven are unknown. One source (http://www.pireport.org/articles/2011/11/08/china-builds-40-million-government-tower-fiji) suggests that the Chinese Government may have offered $13 million of additional debt forgiveness between 2006 and 2011. This issue requires further investigation. This debt forgiveness project is not marked as an umbrella project since the original loan was contracted before 2000, so there is no risk of double counting.

Number of official sources

2

Number of total sources

9