Only 4 per cent of Samoa’s total number of smartphone users are using the Samoa Travel Tracer App, which the Digicel Samoa Chairman Pepe Christian Fruean says is not what they expected. 

Speaking in a press conference on Monday this week, Pepe said they had to meet with the media in order to advocate for more Samoan mobile phone users to use the app to keep Samoa safe from COVID-19.

“The normal set of protocols that the N.E.O.C. and the Government have set will still apply but this is just an extra one in the event of when there is a suspected person within our communities,” he told the media.

“Our Minister of Health is the appropriate authority to do the tracing and the contact person.”

The Digicel Chairman was accompanied to the press conference by the SkyEye Samoa C.E.O. Fa'aso'otauloa Sam Saili, Samoa Tourism Authority C.E.O. Fa'amatuainu Lenatai Suifua,  Vodafone Samoa C.E.O. Nofoasaefa Satish Kumar and the Ministry of Health’s Tagaloa Dr Robert Thompson.

Looking at the total number of smartphone users in Samoa, Pepe said only 4,000 smartphone users are using the app which represents just 4 per cent of the total number of users nationwide.

“There are approximately 100,000 smartphone users in Samoa for both networks and of that number there are approximately 4,000 who are using the app so about 4 per cent, if you look at our vaccination rate right now probably close to 90 per cent so our app usage is a lot less than what we had expected.”

Pepe also dispelled rumours that the SkyEye Samoa-created app is a tracking device, saying all it does is send the phone user a message if the M.O.H. officials detected an infected person’s phone near you. 

“The app is not a tracking app and people need to understand that,” said the Digicel Samoa Chairman.

“It won’t give you names of people and where they live and all that, it simply sends you a message if the M.O.H. authorities have detected an infected person's phone number near you and how far are they from you. 

“But not who they are.”

Tagaloa also told the media conference that the app is one of the key tools that the M.O.H. will use if and when Samoa has a suspected community transmission.

“Included in the app’s main feature that makes it efficient to the M.O.H. Covid-19 response is that it will show the numbers of the phones that have registered through the app,” he said.

“However, it will under no circumstances identify your name. 

“Where the uploading of any personal data or data is only uploaded if you give the app your consent, if the user agrees for its data to be uploaded for the purpose of contact tracing. 

“But all it requires for the app to work is simply numbers, phone numbers of you and those around you which is why it requires your bluetooth to be turned on. 

“The bluetooth scans the phone numbers of those around you and will identify if there are any infected users near you.”