Gatoloaifa’aana Tilianamua Afamasaga (born 5 May 1947) is a Samoan educator. She has been active in teaching and teacher training for over 40 years. In 2016 she was awarded the Krishna Datt Award for Excellence in Trade Unionism and Leadership in the Pacific.

Life

Afamasaga was educated at

Samoa College Samoa College is a secondary school in Samoa officially opened in 1953. It is co-educational and teaches from years 9 to 13. It is in Apia on the island of Upolu and is considered the main college in the country. The early college and curriculum was ...

in Samoa, and Hamilton Girls' High School and Christchurch Teachers' College in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, where she trained as a teacher. She later studied at

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

and

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...

in Australia. After teaching at Samoa College and Vaipouli College, in 1984 Afamasaga was appointed principal of Western Samoa Teachers College, a position she held for thirteen years. In 1997 the college merged with the

National University of Samoa The National University of Samoa (''Lē Iunivesitē Aoao o Sāmoa'') 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 ...

and she became the first Dean of the Faculty of Education. Eight years later, she became the first Director of the university’s Oloamanu Centre for Professional Development and Continuing Education. Afamasaga has been involved in the development of Samoa Qualifications Authority, and president of the Council of Pacific Education. In 2014 she became the founding president of the Samoa Workers Congress. She has also served as the co-ordinator for the Increasing Political Participation of Women in Samoa Programme, a joint programme between UN Women and the

United Nations Development Programme The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

. In 2013 she was appointed to a commission of inquiry investigating abuse of power at Tafaigata prison. On 4 November 2022 she was appointed to the Samoa Public Service Commission. In December 2022 the

announced they would be awarding her an Honorary Doctorate of Letters for her career as an educator.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Afamasaga, Gatoloai Tili Living people 1947 births People educated at Hamilton Girls' High School Victoria University of Wellington alumni Macquarie University alumni Samoan civil servants category:Samoan educators Academic staff of the National University of Samoa