Samoa's deputy prime minister, Misa Telefoni, has admitted that the country is in debt because of the new infrastructures built for the South Pacific Games.
The overall cost of the 13th SPG is reportedly around US$92 million with millions spent on roads and bridges.
However, Misa Telefoni is not too concerned about the mounting debt
"We wanted these facilities to be useful for the games, but we also wanted something of permanent value. That is why we built one gym at the National University and we've got one complex there for Samoa College. We improved the hostels, built ablution blocks. So hopefully this is all good infrastructure. About a hundred million dollars worth of roading and bridges were done, but I mean this was stuff that was needed to be done anyway. So we are a bit in debt, a bit inflationary as economists would say, but we'll cope, we'll get by."
