Samoa’s first female Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa says that gender inequality never played a role in her political career.
She is the daughter of Samoa’s first Prime Minister Fiamē Mataʻafa Faumuina Mulinuʻu II.
She was a member of the Human Rights Protection Party until 2020. The first woman appointed to Cabinet in Samoa's history. Fiame was the Minister of Education from 1991 to 2006 in addition to that, she was the Minister of Women, Community and Social Development from 2006 to 2011 and was the first female Minister for Justice and Courts Administration from 2011 to 2016.
Fiame served as Samoa's first female Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Leader of the HRPP from 2016 to 2020, resigning in opposition to the controversial Lands and Titles Bills.
The following year she joined the newly founded FAST party and was unanimously elected its leader in March 2021.
During the media masterclass consisting of the close to 20 journalists, Fiame said her status and age wasn’t really anything she was concerned about.
(PLAY AUDIO)
