Ratu ''Ratu'' () is an Austronesian title used by male Fijians of chiefly rank. An equivalent title, ''adi'' (pronounced ), is used by females of chiefly rank. In the Malay language, the title ''ratu'' is also the traditional honorific title to re ...

Sir Josaia Tavaiqia, KBE (1931 – 17 November 1997) was a

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), 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 ...

chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

and politician, who served as one of two vice presidents of Fiji from 1990 until his death in 1997. (From 1990 to 1999, Fiji had two vice-presidents concurrently). Tavaiqia, who held the chiefly title of ''

Tui Vuda Tui Vuda is the traditional title of the paramount chief of the Vuda district in Ba Province on Fiji's northwest coast. The most recent person to hold the title is Ratu ''Ratu'' () is an Austronesian title used by male Fijians of chiefly ran ...

,'' or Paramount Chief of Vuda, one of the subdivisions of

Ba Province Ba is a province of Fiji, occupying the north-western sector of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island. It is one of fourteen provinces in the nation of Fiji, and one of eight based in Viti Levu. It is Fiji's most populous province, with a population o ...

, died on 17 November 1997 at the age of 66. He was succeeded, both as ''Tui Vuda'' and as vice-president by Ratu Josefa Iloilo. Tavaiqia was a civil servant before he ventured into politics, serving as a

Cabinet Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, � ...

in the administration of Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara in the 1970s-1980s. He was well known for his efforts to improve the livelihood of the people of the

. During his tenure as Minister for Forests, Tavaiqia negotiated with landowners to lease marginal land with little use for any agricultural development to the Fiji Pine Commission and later Fiji Pine Limited.

References

1931 births 1997 deaths Fijian chiefs Fijian knights Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Vice-presidents of Fiji Politicians from Lautoka {{Fiji-politician-stub