American Samoa
(Territory of the US)
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Pago Pago has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds; strategic location in the South Pacific Ocean.
American Samoa has a traditional
Polynesian economy in which more than 90% of the land is communally owned.
Economic activity is strongly linked to the US with which American Samoa
conducts most of its commerce. Tuna fishing and tuna processing plants are the
backbone of the private sector, with canned tuna the primary export. Transfers
from the US Government add substantially to American Samoa's economic well
being. Attempts by the government to develop a larger and broader economy are
restrained by Samoa's remote location, its limited transportation, and its
devastating hurricanes. Tourism is a promising developing sector.
Source: The Country Factbook, CIA. |
Flag Description:
blue, with a white triangle edged in red that is based on the outer side and
extends to the hoist side; a brown and white American bald eagle flying
toward the hoist side is carrying two traditional Samoan symbols of
authority, a staff and a war club
Settled
as early as 1000 B.C., Samoa was "discovered" by European explorers in the 18th
century. International rivalries in the latter half of the 19th century were
settled by an 1899 treaty in which Germany and the US divided the Samoan
archipelago. The US formally occupied its portion - a smaller group of eastern
islands with the excellent harbor of Pago Pago - the following year.