It should be made clear from the outset that this paper does not attempt to evaluate the current CLGF-UNDP capacity building project, nor does it suggest that this project fails to recognize the traditional governance structure of local government in Samoa. On the contrary, this paper seeks to highlight the fact that there are traditional mechanisms in place that underpin the practice of accountability and transparency in local government, and there that any process of capacity building requires a thorough examination and strengthening of those mechanisms. The CLGF-UNDP project id attempting precisely that approach.