Lautimuia Afoa Uelese Vaʻai (born ) is a

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

n politician and Member of the

Legislative Assembly of Samoa The Legislative Assembly (), also known as the Parliament of Samoa (), is the national legislature of Samoa, seated at Apia, where the country's central administration is situated. Samoan Parliament is composed of two parts: the O le Ao o le M ...

. He is a member of the FAST Party. He is a nephew of former Prime Minister

Vaʻai Kolone Vaai Kolone (11 November 1911 – 20 April 2001) was the fourth prime minister of Samoa and a founder of the Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP) in Samoa. He served as prime minister twice, first between 13 April and 18 September 1982, and then ...

. Lautimuia is from the villages of Magiagi and

Vaisala Vaisala Oyj () is a Finnish company that produces products and services for environmental and industrial measurement. Their major customer groups and markets are national meteorological and hydrological services, aviation authorities, defense ...

and trained as an accountant at the

University of the South Pacific The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and is owned by the gov ...

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

and

Auckland University of Technology Auckland University of Technology ( AUT; ) is a university in New Zealand, formed on 1 January 2000 when a former technical college (originally established in 1895) was granted university status. AUT is New Zealand's third largest university i ...

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 ...

. He worked as a lecturer at the

National University of Samoa The National University of Samoa () is the only national university in Samoa. Established in 1984 by an act of parliament, it is coeducational and provides certificate, diploma, and undergraduate degree programs, as well as technical and vocationa ...

and as a senior civil servant before being appointed chief executive of the Samoa Shipping Corporation in November 2017. He contested the

2016 Samoan general election General elections were held in Samoa on 4 March 2016 to determine the composition of the 16th Parliament. Two parties contested the election, the ruling Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP), led by Prime Minister Tuilaʻepa Saʻilele Malieleg ...

in the Vaimauga West 1 Constituency as a candidate for the

Human Rights Protection Party The Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP, ) is a Samoan political party. It was founded in 1979 and dominated Samoan party politics for decades thereafter, leading every government until their defeat in 2021. Former Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele ...

. In February 2023 he was selected as the FAST Party candidate for the 2023 Vaimauga 3 by-election. He won the by-election, defeating his HRPP rival by 400 votes in the preliminary count. He was sworn in as an MP on 7 March 2023. In a cabinet reshuffle on 6 September 2023 he was appointed Minister of Finance, replacing Mulipola Anarosa Ale Molioo from 1 October 2023.

References

Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Vaisigano University of the South Pacific alumni Auckland University of Technology alumni Academic staff of the National University of Samoa Samoan civil servants Members of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa Faʻatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi politicians Ministers of finance of Samoa {{Samoa-politician-stub