Op-ed Part Three: Governance Matters — Trust, Discipline, and the Long View
(January 08, 2026) In Parts One and Two of this series, I discussed how pension sustainability is inseparable from economic growth, education investment, and the structure of public revenues.







![Pasefika Workforce Solutions opened it doors locally — the office is a part of the SMART Education Exchange (SEE) Pacific Islands Project, an initiative designed to strengthen K–12 education and workforce development, beginning in American Samoa and expanding across the Pacific region. [Courtesy photo] Pasefika Workforce Solutions](https://samoanews.com/sites/default/files/styles/teaser/public/field/image/pasefika_worforce_solutions.jpg?itok=kvuIdhox)
![The US Chargé d’Affaires, Daniel Tarapacki and the Acting Chief Executive Officer, Tuaopepe Perenise Tinei of the Ministry of Education and Culture with Principal Muliagatele at the project site [courtesy photo] school site](https://samoanews.com/sites/default/files/styles/teaser/public/field/image/magiagi-primary-school-site2.jpg?itok=hZBa8ALK)
![Cook Islands activists confront the EV Nautilus upon its return to Rarotonga, holding banners reading 'Don't Mine The Moana.' [Photo: Supplied / Greenpeace] 'Don't Mine The Moana' sign](https://samoanews.com/sites/default/files/styles/teaser/public/field/image/dont_mind_the_moana.jpg?itok=dFW4B-Tk)