Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The Lolo Administration is moving to expand the construction of gymnasiums at public elementary schools with high enrollment, giving students a place to exercise, play, and hold school assemblies.

Speaking at Monday’s Fono joint session, Gov. Lolo Matalasi Moliga revealed the Administration’s plan and said he hopes that by 2021, all of the large public schools will have their own gymnasiums.

What is happening now, he said, is that when there is recess, students remain in their classrooms because there’s no place for them to play and no facility to carry out other programs for the schools.

The governor pointed out that the gym at Aua Elementary is already constructed, and following a groundbreaking last month, work is proceeding now at Tafuna Elementary. The next groundbreaking on the schedule is Matafao Elementary, followed by Peter Coleman Elementary, for which funding is now available.

According to Lolo, Pavaiai, Lupelele, Leone Midkiff and other mid-size elementary schools are also included in the plan.

“In 2018, we constructed more classrooms, gymnasiums, and other support facilities,” he said, citing that Fagali’i, Coleman, and Samoana HS dedicated new classroom facilities.

“Our investment strategy adopted a holistic approach aimed to develop mental capacity as well as to accentuate and to nourish athletic talents, not only to facilitate the creation of an alternate access to post secondary education through athletic scholarships, but also our pathway to tackle the steady rise in non-communicable diseases such as obesity, hypertension, high blood pressure, and heart attacks,” he explained.

The governor also said the Youth Development Gymnasium for the Western District will break ground next month, with construction expected to be completed this year. 

According to Lolo, the fundamental idea behind building these gymnasiums is to develop and showcase the athletic talents of local youth.

“Giving our youth healthy outlets to burn energy and to congregate in a supervised setting will hopefully deter them from engaging in drugs and destructive behavior,” he said. “We are also very mindful of the alarming rate at which chronic non-communicable disease and health issues are climbing, which are all obesity-based caused by inactivity and diet.”