Hon. Fiame Naomi Mata’afa is a Samoan High Chief and a senior member of the Cabinet in the Samoan Government. Elected into Parliament for the first time in 1985 for the constituency of Lotofaga, she is one of the longest-standing Members of Parliament.
She has been a Cabinet Minister since 1991 serving as Minister of Education (1991–2006), Minister for Women, Community and Social Development (2006–2011), Minister for Justice and Courts Administration, and Film Censorship and Electoral Commission (2011–2016). She is now the Deputy Prime Minister, the first female official to hold such a position, concurrently the Minister for Environment and Natural Resources (2016–2021). She is a member of the Human Rights Protection Party.
Hon. Mataafa has represented Samoa and the Pacific region on the executive boards of UNESCO, the Commonwealth of Learning, and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Women’s Committee. She completed in 2012 a six-year term as Pro-Chancellor and Chairperson of the University of the South Pacific.
Hon. Mataafa is a strong advocate for women’s equality. She is the President of the Samoa National Council of Women, and the Women in Leadership Advocates (WinLA—a public sector women leaders group).