Funding to build the National Emergency Operations Centre will come from the World Bank through an I.D.A.  grant and will be implemented by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. 

This is according to a press statement issued by the M.N.R.E. Chief Executive Officer Ulu Bismark Crawley in response to questions on the contract. 

The $6.40 million tala contract was awarded to Zheng Construction Co. Ltd. 

Ulu explained that Cabinet approved the contract to the said Company in December last year.  

“The N.E.O.C. is one of the key components of the Samoa Pacific Resilience Project and it will be located at Tuanaimato." 

“And will also accommodate the Disaster Management Office in its routine day-to-day functions and to house the influx of support and resources needed to coordinate disaster response operations." 

“The project will commence in early February 2019 once the contract is signed,” said Ulu. 

As reported earlier, other companies that vied for the tender included Pacific Engineering Projects Ltd, Fletcher Construction Co. Ltd, Jiangsu Geology & Engineering, Schwarz Construction Co. Ltd and Ah Liki Construction Co. Ltd. 

Zheng Construction Co. Ltd is owned by Peizheng Wang and Jie Xue of China and Feagaimaleata Lei Sam of Ululoloa. 

The center, which comes under the Disaster Management Office, is part of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. 

The center is the facility that serves as a disaster coordination centre and is responsible for ensuring the ongoing coordination, development and implementation of Disaster Risk Management programmes and activities in Samoa.