Fepulea'i Margie Apa (born 1973/1974) is a

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 ...

healthcare manager and head of

Te Whatu Ora Te Whatu Ora, or Health New Zealand, is a public health agency established by the New Zealand Government to replace the country's 20 district health boards (DHBs) on 1 July 2022. Te Whatu Ora is charged with working alongside the Public Health ...

, the health authority which came into operation in July 2022. Of Samoan descent she was the first Samoan to be head of a district health board.

Early life and education

Apa was born in New Zealand in 1973 or 1974. Her parents were Samoan emigrants from Savai'i and

Apia Apia () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Samoa, as well as the nation's only city. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō ...

. She grew up in

Ōtara Ōtara is a suburb of South Auckland, New Zealand (formerly Manukau City), situated 18 kilometres to the southeast of the Auckland CBD. Ōtara lies near the head of the Tamaki River (actually an arm of the Hauraki Gulf), which extends south tow ...

. She attended

Papatoetoe High School Papatoetoe High School (PHS) is a secondary school (years 9–13) in Papatoetoe suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. History Papatoetoe High School was established in 1956. February 2021 COVID-19 outbreak On 14 February, a Year 9 student at Papat ...

. At the

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

she gained a

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (abbreviated BComm or BCom; also, ''baccalaureates commercii'') is an undergraduate degree in business, usually awarded in Canada, Australia, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Ireland, New Zealand, Ghana, South Africa, Myanmar, ...

degree, followed by a Master of Public Policy from

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 ...

Career

Apa has held positions as Deputy Director General in the Ministry of Health, and executive roles at

Capital and Coast District Health Board The Capital and Coast District Health Board (CCDHB) was a district health board with the focus on providing healthcare to Wellington City, Porirua City and the Kapiti Coast in New Zealand. The CCDHB employed about 6000 people across the Wellingt ...

, the Labour Market Policy Group,

State Services Commission The Public Service Commission (PSC; Māori: ''Te Kawa Mataaho''), called the State Services Commission until 2020, is the central public service department of New Zealand charged with overseeing, managing, and improving the performance of the ...

and the Health Funding Authority. In 2012 she became Director, Population Health and Strategy at the

Counties Manukau District Health Board The Counties Manukau District Health Board (CM Health) was a district health board which focused on providing healthcare to the Counties Manukau area in southern Auckland, New Zealand. As of 2016, it ws responsible for 534,750 residents; or 11% ...

(CMDHB). She was appointed chief executive of CMDHB in 2018, the first Samoan to head a District Health Board. The New Zealand government announced in 2021 that two new health authorities,

and the Māori health authority

Te Aka Whai Ora Te Aka Whai Ora ( en, Māori Health Authority (MHA)) is an independent New Zealand government statutory entity tasked with managing Māori health policies, services, and outcomes. The agency is one of four national bodies that oversee New Zealand ...

, would be created in 2022 to replace the district health boards. Apa was appointed in December 2021 as chief executive of the interim Health New Zealand. She has also been chair of Presbyterian Support, and is on the board of

World Vision In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

Personal life

Apa is married to Riki Apa and they have two daughters. Her title Fepulea'i is a chiefly title from her father's village in Savai'i.

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

References

Further reading