HON. HU’AKAVAMEILIKU
Hon. Hu’akavameiliku [Siaosi ‘Ofakivahafolau Sovaleni] is the Minister of Public Enterprises, Government of Tonga since August 2022.
Before his Ministerial appointment, he worked as a public servant for Tonga’s Ministry of Finance from 1996 to 2010, before working for the Pacific Community and Asian Development Bank. He returned to Tonga to work as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ministry of Public Enterprises from May 2013 to October 2014. Formerly the CEO of the MPE, he led the state owed enterprises (SOE) reform programme that focused on board governance, improved compliance and improved financial performance. Hon. Sovaleni was appointed on 31st December 2014 as the Deputy Prime Minister of Tonga and also the Minister of Environment and Communications.
Following the death of ‘Akilisi Pohiva in 2019, he was appointed as Minister of Education and Training in October 2019 to present.
In January 2021, he was bestowed with the chiefly title of Hu’akavameiliku, which had also been held by his father.
In post-election negotiations, he emerged as one of the two chief contenders for the Premiership, along with ‘Aisake Eke. On 15th December 2021, he was elected Prime Minister of Tonga.
He hold a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science in 1992. He subsequently completed a Master’s Degree at the University of Oxford, and an MBA at the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji.
