There will be signs for 146 villages in Upolu and 77 in Savaii and this is expected to boost the economy of each village and promote them to tourists in the long run.

The launching of the village signs under the Samoa Tourism Recovery and Resilience program was done on Tuesday.

The signage project manned by the Samoa Tourism Authority (S.T.A.) which cost over $320,000 and is funded by the Government of New Zealand.

New Zealand High Commissioner to Samoa Trevor Matheson said the economic benefits of the project will be felt by the villages.

"Signage is an essential component of any business marketing strategy. It's proven to drive traffic and sales but its' powers are often overlooked," he added.

"Having appropriate signage for tourists in Samoa is essential to ensure that these tourists have a positive experience while visiting these islands and know where they are."

Villages that have existed for years but have not had their names on official sign boards will now be known to tourists and motorists.

Chief Executive Officer (C.E.O.) for S.T.A, Toleafoa Pativaine Tevita said the project was long planned and is also in preparations for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (C.H.O.G.M.) which is to be held in Samoa in October.

"We've long planned for these signs for each village and the launching also is relevant with the C.H.O.G.M and we're trying to complete installing them by the end of this month," she said.

"This project was given different names, started with the Samoa Tourism Support program, then the Samoa Tourism Growth Partnership, And now this after the COVID-19, all funded by the Government of New Zealand."

Toleafoa added that after the installation of signages for Upolu and Savaii villages, they will also look at villages in Manono and Apolima islands which she stressed should not take too long to complete given that they have fewer villages.

The launching of the signage boards for 223 villages was held at the S.T.A Fale on Tuesday and also coincided with S.T.A.'s farewell to the outgoing High Commissioner of New Zealand to Samoa.