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The Austral-Pacific region has numerous characteristics that make regional coordination on invasive alien species issues particularly important. For example, 98% of its 30 million km2 is ocean; the remaining 2% contains 7500 islands, of which just 500 are inhabited. Many islands in the three subregions - Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia - are small and widely scattered. Whereas the ocean once provided a natural barrier against the spread of pests and diseases, the rapid expansion of trade, travel, and transport now make the region particularly vulnerable to the devastating impacts of IAS. Furthermore, Pacific islands share trading routes, partnerships, and regional infrastructure which can increase opportunities for the introduction of IAS. The inhabitants of the Austral-Pacific region, therefore, have a mutual interest in preventing and managing IAS at the point of export and import.

American Samoa is a group of oceanic islands, which lie about 3,680 km southwest of Hawaiíi and about 2,560 km from the northern tip of New Zealand. It is situated along 14 degrees latitude south of the equator. Its immediate neighbor is Samoa (formerly known as Western Samoa), an independent state 128 km to the west. The total land area of American Samoa is about 200 square kilometers, which is shared by five main islands, namely Tutuila, Tau, Ofu, Olosega, and Aunuu. The climate is tropical humid, with an annual rainfall ranging from 3,175 mm at sea level to more than 7,000 mm on the highest mountain, Lata on Tau island.