Disaster and safety risks were identified at the Salelologa Market in Savaii through the Markets for Change (M4C) Project workshop to help the Salelologa Market Vendors Association (MVA) make a disaster preparedness plan. 

In 2023, a risk assessment was conducted by Samoa Red Cross, Samoa Fire, Emergency Services Authority for the Salelologa Market building, and it was reported that the market does not have an existing response plan for any type of emergency.  The assessments had also revealed the many challenges faced by women market vendors around their safety, such as there is poor lighting inside the marketplace, many are broken and required maintenance, due to the condition of the market building, the floor becomes slippery when it rains and according to market vendors several o fatal incidents has happened putting the lives of customers and vendors in danger.  

The workshop brought together representatives from the M4C Project team, alongside the Salelologa MVA Executive, market management, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) and the Disaster Management Office (DMO) that is partnering with UN Women.

The disaster preparedness workshop will assess local vulnerabilities, map hazard risks, and identify priority actions to enhance market resilience. The participatory approach will ensure that the voices of women vendors—who form the majority of the market community—are central to the planning and implementation of future disaster response strategies.

“This mission is a critical step in ensuring that market vendors, particularly women, are not only economically empowered but also equipped to respond to climate and disaster risks,” said Fesiliai Tulia Molimau-Iosefa, M4C National Project Coordinator. “By embedding resilience into market governance, we are building safer, more inclusive, and sustainable marketplaces.”

“Before the training, we didn’t really think about what to do if a cyclone or flood hit while we were working. Now, we know how to protect ourselves, our families, and even our stalls. It gave us confidence to work together with the market management team to initiate a plan. That kind of knowledge is just as valuable as the goods we sell,” said Leatigaga Pele Fa’amamafa-Tanuvasa, Market Vendor, Salelologa Market.

This result helped inform the Market for Change Project, stakeholders including government and market management and the market vendor associations on the situation in the market.

“The aim is that the findings from the scoping workshop will inform the development of a localized Disaster Preparedness and Risk Reduction Plan for Salelologa market aligned with Samoa’s national disaster frameworks and regional climate adaptation priorities,” said Asofa Vaatausili, Salelologa Market Manager, Ministry of Lands and Survey.

The same exercise is expected to be carried out for the Fugalei market and the Savalalo market in the coming weeks.