Western Samoa's 1967 coinage was the first issue struck for the newly independent nation, which had shed New Zealand trusteeship in 1962 — making this a founding series rather than a continuation of an existing currency. Tanumafili II served as co-Head of State alongside Tupua Tamasese Mea'ole until the latter's death in 1963, after which Tanumafili ruled as sole O le Ao o le Malo until his own death in 2007, giving him one of the longest tenures of any head of state in the Pacific.
Western Samoa's 1967 coinage was the first issue struck for the newly independent nation, which had shed New Zealand trusteeship in 1962 — making this a founding series rather than a continuation of an existing currency. Tanumafili II served as co-Head of State alongside Tupua Tamasese Mea'ole until the latter's death in 1963, after which Tanumafili ruled as sole O le Ao o le Malo until his own death in 2007, giving him one of the longest tenures of any head of state in the Pacific.