Lanelle Olandrea Tanangada (born 1 July 1979) is a

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

teacher and politician who has served as the country's

Education Minister An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

since April 2020.

Early life and education

Lanelle Oleandra Tanangada was born on 1 July 1979 in

Western Province Western Province or West Province may refer to: *Western Province, Cameroon *Western Province, Rwanda *Western Province (Kenya) *Western Province (Papua New Guinea) *Western Province (Solomon Islands) *Western Province, Sri Lanka *Western Provinc ...

. Her father is part Ranongga and

Vella Vella is a village and a former municipality in the district of Surselva in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. The municipalities of Cumbel, Degen, Lumbrein, Morissen, Suraua, Vignogn, Vella, and Vrin merged on 1 January 2013 into the ...

and her mother is from Marovo Lagoon. Her parents were

Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbat ...

missionaries and she has one elder brother. She attended SDA mission primary schools in

Honiara Honiara () is the capital and largest city of Solomon Islands, situated on the northwestern coast of Guadalcanal. , it had a population of 92,344 people. The city is served by Honiara International Airport and the seaport of Point Cruz, and lies ...

and Betikama Adventist High School. Tanangada undertook undergraduate studies at the

Pacific Adventist University Pacific Adventist University (PAU) is a tertiary institution located 21 kilometres (30 minutes) outside Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, and operated by the South Pacific Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Both the faculty and the stu ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...

and received a

Master of Education The Master of Education (MEd or M.Ed. or Ed.M.; Latin ''Magister Educationis'' or ''Educationis Magister'') is a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum an ...

from the

University of Waikato The University of Waikato (), established in 1964, is a Public university, public research university located in Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton, New Zealand. An additional campus is located in Tauranga. The university performs research in nume ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

in 2013, with a thesis titled ''A study of language use in secondary school classrooms in the Solomon Islands: Conceptions, practices and proficiencies''. She was a teacher at SDA schools in Kukudu, Burns Creek and Betikama.

Political career

Tanangada was elected as the independent representative for Gizo/Kolombangara constituency in a May 2018

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

after her husband Jimson Tanangada lost the seat after being convicted of bribing voters during the 2014 election. The charges were brought by former

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Gordon Darcy Lilo, who then contested the seat. Tanangada defeated Lilo with 2580 votes to his 1593. She was the first woman in the Western Province elected to the

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

and the fourth woman MP in the country's history. On 18 October 2019, she was sworn in as Minister for Women, Youth and Children Affairs. Tanangada joined the

Kadere Party The Kadere Party is a political party in Solomon Islands. It tends to be most popular among those in the shipping and logging industries. History The Kadere Party has been part of coalition governments. In the 2024 Solomon Islands general electi ...

and became part of the Democratic Coalition Government for Advancement. She was re-elected for a full term in the April 2019 elections, again defeating Lilo with 4397 votes to his 4002. She became one of only two women in the 50-seat Parliament. She was appointed Minister for Police, National Security and Correctional Services, a position she resigned from in October 2019. In April 2020, she became Minister for Education and Human Resources Development under

Manasseh Sogavare Manasseh Damukana Sogavare (born 17 January 1955) is a Solomon Islander politician serving as Minister of Finance since 2024. He served as the prime minister of Solomon Islands for a total of nine years from 2000–2001, 2006–2007, 2014–2017 ...

Personal life

Tanangada is married to Jimson Tanangada and they have two children. She is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

References

External links

Parliamentary profile

Ministry of Education
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanangada, Lanelle Living people 1979 births University of Waikato alumni Women government ministers of the Solomon Islands Education ministers of the Solomon Islands People from the Western Province (Solomon Islands) 21st-century politicians 21st-century women politicians Kadere Party politicians Solomon Islands Christians