Setefano Tau'ili'ili, 38, Amaile and Pu'apu'a.

“In my own understanding, the cause of this issue falls on our young people itself. They should prioritise their family and think of what future they can bring. In some cases, the government should provide guidance and assistance for our youth on how they can find a job that is suitable for them, or elevate some projects in villages to encourage our young people that there are other sources of income rather than roaming around and cause trouble in the town area.”

Liutuiga Lauti, 25, Poutasi Falealili.

“There are plenty of job opportunities that are available for our young people but the problem is they prefer living without getting a good job. Parents should take a lead at this point as they were the first to nurture and educate their kids, they need to play their role of giving advice and words of encouragement to their children."

Aitukiki Malamala, 45, Samusu.

“I believe this issue started within families and they are the ones that can provide a solution to the problem. As the saying goes 'family is the first educational background of a Samoan child' so they are responsible for raising their children and challenging them to come up with a dream in the future. However, our young people need to refrain from saying that they are not capable because they have poor education backgrounds and that they lack of skills and knowledge to carry out jobs, but they have to step out of their comfort zone and start looking for jobs as there are numerous of opportunities available for them.”

Nuanua, 32, Satitoa.

“Young people find it very hard to look for a job that has good wages because most workplaces require people with qualifications and knowledge to do the work. I think that is one of the reasons why a lot of our youth are likely to go and work overseas to pick fruits instead of working here in Samoa.“

Leu, 19, Vaimoso Uta.

“The money we get here in Samoa is not enough to provide for what I need and for my family because I get paid at the rate of $3.00 for an hour so it is better to look for an opportunity to go overseas on seasonal work since it is the only option to help develop my family in terms of finance.”

 Oliana, 41, Apia. 

 “The main cause on the increase of unemployed youths roaming in town areas is laziness. Our youths prefer living a jobless life knowing that life in Samoa is free, unlike other developed countries such as New Zealand, people need to work every day to pay off bills. But here in Samoa we do not need to pay for our land, and families have their own plantations and farms that provide for their needs.”