Feleti Penitala Teo OBE (born 9 October 1962) is a Tuvaluan lawyer and civil servant. He is the son of Sir Fiatau Penitala Teo who was appointed as the first

Governor General of Tuvalu The governor-general of Tuvalu is the vice-regal representative of the Tuvaluan monarch, currently King Charles III, in the country of Tuvalu. The monarch is the head of state of Tuvalu, with the governor-general performing the monarch's duti ...

(1978–1986) following independence from Great Britain. In December 2014 at the 11th regular session of the WCPFC in Apia,

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

, he was appointed the executive director of the

Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) is both a general and a tuna regional fisheries management organisation established to conserve and manage tuna and other highly migratory fish stocks across the western and central a ...

(WCPFC). He was a former acting

Secretary General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

of the Pacific Islands Forum (2008). Teo has also served as Attorney General of Tuvalu (1991-2000) and Director General of the Forum Fishery Agency (2000-2006).

Education

Feleti Teo received his

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

degree from the University of Canterbury in

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, New Zealand, and a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

degree in Public Law from

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies an ...

in Canberra, Australia. In 1986, he became the first Tuvaluan to qualify as a lawyer upon being admitted as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand.

Career

Teo was the first Tuvaluan to serve as the Attorney General of Tuvalu and Head of Legal and Judicial Services of

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-nor ...

From 1991 to 2000. His predecessors were expatriates John Wilson, Neil Davidson, Beith Atkinson and David Ballantyne respectively (1978-1991). During Teo's tenure, Cameron Dick served as the Acting Attorney General of Tuvalu from 1995 to 1996 while Teo undertook postgraduate studies at the Australian National University in Canberra.

Iakoba Italeli Sir Iakoba Taeia Italeli is a Tuvaluan politician who was the governor-general of Tuvalu from 16 April 2010, until 22 August 2019, when he resigned to contest in the 2019 general election. He is also a former attorney general of Tuvalu who ...

succeeded Teo as the Attorney General of Tuvalu in 2002. From 2000 to 2006, he was Director General of the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), based in Honiara,

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...

. From 2007 to 2013 he served as Deputy Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), headquartered in Fiji. During this period he was also acting Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum (2008), due to the illness and subsequent death of its Secretary General, Greg Urwin of Australia. In 2014, Teo was appointed interim secretary general for the newly established regional organisation, the Pacific Islands Development Forum (PIDF), which he held until his appointment to the WCPFC. (The other two nominees for secretary general were Wilkie Rasmussen, the foreign minister of the

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

, and

Tuiloma Neroni Slade Tuiloma Neroni Slade (born 8 April 1941) held the post of secretary general of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat from 2008 to 4 December 2014. He was elected to the position for three years on 20 August 2008. Slade was reappointed to a se ...

, the former attorney general of

and former justice of the

International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals f ...

. Ultimately, Slade was chosen as the next secretary general at the Pacific Islands Forum meeting in

Niue Niue (, ; niu, Niuē) is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand. Niue's land area is about and its population, predominantly Polynesian, was about 1,600 in 2016. Niue is located in a triangle between Tong ...

, while Teo was appointed to head the WCPFC Secretariat as executive director in December 2014. Teo was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the

2013 Birthday Honours The 2013 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...

for services to government.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Teo, Feleti Secretaries General of the Pacific Islands Forum Tuvaluan diplomats University of Canterbury alumni Australian National University alumni Attorneys General of Tuvalu Living people 1962 births Officers of the Order of the British Empire