Casten Ned Nemra (born July 29, 1971) is a Marshallese politician who was

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

of the

Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...

for 17 days in January 2016. He was elected by the Nitijeļā (Parliament) as President in January 2016, following the 2015 general election, narrowly defeating Senator Alvin Jacklick, a seven-term member of Parliament, by a 17–16 vote. He was the youngest person to hold the job and the second

commoner A commoner, also known as the ''common man'', ''commoners'', the ''common people'' or the ''masses'', was in earlier use an ordinary person in a community or nation who did not have any significant social status, especially a member of neither ...

. He was ousted by a vote of

no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or man ...

after just two weeks in office by the opposition for jumping ship and joining Iroij Mike Kabua's Aelon Kein Ad party along with Senators Dennis Momotaro and Daisy-Alik Momotaro.

Early life and education

Nemra was born on July 29, 1971, in Ebeye,

Kwajalein Atoll Kwajalein Atoll (; Marshallese: ) is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island, which its majority English-speaking residents (about 1,000 mostly U.S. civili ...

, Marshall Islands, which were part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands at the time. He was educated at Assumption High School, a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

school in Majuro. Nemra received a

Bachelor of Business Administration Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is a bachelor's degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of business administration and usually including advanc ...

from

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decades ...

in 2000.

Career

Nemra served as the Budget Director for Office of International Development Assistance from 2001 to 2004. He then served as Assistant Secretary for the Ministry of Finance from 2004 to 2007. Nemra was next appointed the Chief Secretary of the Republic of the Marshall Islands from 2008 until 2015. Nemra was elected as a Senator in the Nitijeļā in the 2015 general election, representing the Jaluit Atoll constituency in the Ralik Chain. Since January 2020, he has been the foreign minister of the Marshall Islands. As foreign minister, he highlighted that the Marshallese government and people "have no intention to relocate" or become climate refugees. He said in April 2021 that the Marshallese are on the islands to stay.

Personal life

Nemra is married to Terry Paul Nemra, the former First Lady of the Marshall Islands. The couple have four children. A resident of Jaluit Atoll, Nemra speaks both English and Marshallese.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nemra, Casten 1971 births Living people Foreign Ministers of the Marshall Islands Members of the Legislature of the Marshall Islands Oregon State University alumni People from the Ralik Chain Presidents of the Marshall Islands Marshallese Roman Catholics 21st-century Marshallese politicians