Henry Naisali
{{Short description|Tuvaluan politician (1928–2004)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2017}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|honorific-prefix = The Honourable
|name = Henry Faati Naisali
|honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=UK|CMG|AO|OBE|size=100%}}
|image = Henry Naisali (February 1988).jpg
|caption = Naisali in 1988
|order = Director of the South Pacific Bureau for Economic Co-operation; then Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum.
|term_start = January 1986
|term_end = January 1992
|deputy =
|predecessor = Mahe Tupouniua (Tonga)
|successor = Ieremia Tabai (Kiribati)
|birth_date = 7 December 1928
|birth_place = Nukulaelae, Tuvalu
|death_date = 20 October 2004
|death_place = Auckland, New Zealand
|occupation =
|spouse = Vaimaila
|children = 4
}}
Henry Faati Naisali (7 December 1928 – 20 October 2004){{cite web |title= Obituary: Henry Naisali| publisher= New Zealand Herald|date = 29 October 2004|url= http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=3605339 | access-date=24 June 2017}} was a Tuvaluan politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Tuvalu (1985-1989), Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum (1988-1992) and Pro-Chancellor of The University of the South Pacific (1985-1990). He is notable for co-founding the Tuvalu Trust Fund which lead Tuvalu to achieve greater financial autonomy.
He attended the Elisefou School on Vaitupu, the Ratu Kadavulevu and Queen Victoria schools in Fiji, St. Andrews College in Christchurch, New Zealand, and studied at Canterbury University College, 1954-1956.{{cite web |work=The National Union |volume=7 |issue=2 |title=Naisali new head of SPEC|date= 30 January 1986|url= https://comfsm.fm/library/digitallibrary/V7N21986.pdf | access-date=23 September 2021}} He joined the Gilbert and Ellice Islands civil service in 1952. He participated in the negotiations in London which resulted in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony being separated into the British colonies of Kiribati and Tuvalu.
Financial Secretary of the British Colony of Tuvalu
He was appointed Financial Secretary of the British Colony of Tuvalu in 1976. He was elected to represent Nukulaelae in the House of Assembly of the British Colony of Tuvalu in the 1977 Tuvaluan general election.{{cite book |first1=Tito |last1=Isala |editor-first1=Hugh |editor-last1=Laracy |title=Tuvalu: A History|year= 1983 |publisher= University of the South Pacific/Government of Tuvalu|pages=169–173|chapter= Chapter 20, Secession and Independence}} In the 1977 elections Naisali defeated by only 14 votes Isakala Paeniu who had been a minister in the administration of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony.{{cite web |work=Pacific Islands Monthly |volume=52 |issue=8 |page=31|title= Tuvalu holding its elections |date = August 1981 |url= https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-342060542/view?partId=nla.obj-342088412#page/n30/mode/1up | accessdate=16 October 2021}}
Finance Minister of Tuvalu
Tuvalu became fully independent within the Commonwealth on 1 October 1978. The first elections for the Parliament of Tuvalu were not held until 8 September 1981.{{cite web | work=Inter-Parliamentary Union|title=Palamene o Tuvalu (Parliament of Tuvalu) |date =1981|url= http://www.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/arc/TUVALU_1981_E.PDF| access-date=7 March 2013}}{{cite journal|last1=Macdonald |first1=Barrie|title= Tuvalu: The 1981 General Election |year= 1983|journal= Political Science |volume=35|issue=1|pages=71–77|doi=10.1177/003231878303500105}}
Naisali was elected to the Parliament of Tuvalu in the 1981 Tuvaluan general election and was appointed Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister.{{cite web | work=Pacific Islands Monthly |volume=52 |issue=11 |page=33|title= Tuvalu's turn for a change of PM |date = November 1981|url= https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-342116375/view?partId=nla.obj-342133266#page/n32/mode/1up | accessdate=16 October 2021}} He was re-elected in the 1985 Tuvaluan general election and was re-appointed finance minister and deputy prime minister in the government of prime minister Tomasi Puapua.{{cite web |publisher=Inter-Parliamentary Union|title=Palamene o Tuvalu (Parliament of Tuvalu) |date =1985|url= http://www.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/arc/TUVALU_1985_E.PDF| access-date=24 June 2017}} He was appointed as the director of South Pacific Bureau for Economic Cooperation (SPEC) in 1986.{{cite web | work=The National Union |volume=7 |issue=2 |title=Naisali new head of SPEC|date= 30 January 1986|url= https://comfsm.fm/library/digitallibrary/V7N21986.pdf | access-date=23 September 2021}} In 1987, he was instrumental in the formation of the Tuvalu Trust Fund, which involving the governments of the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand providing the capital for a sovereign wealth fund to support the budget of the government of Tuvalu. Japan, and South Korea also contributed to the fund.{{cite web| last =Gooray | first =Elena |title= Tuvalu: Trust Fund Nation| publisher= Pacific Standard|date =13 April 2016 |url= http://psmag.com/news/tuvalu-trust-fund-nation| access-date=24 June 2017}}
He was re-elected in the 1989 Tuvaluan general election, however he was not re-elected in the 1993 elections.{{cite web| last =Field | first = Michael J.|title= Scandals Impact Tuvalu's March Elections| publisher= Pacific Islands Report|date = 30 January 1998 |url= http://www.pireport.org/articles/1998/01/30/scandals-impact-tuvalus-march-elections| access-date=24 June 2017}}
Pacific Islands Forum
Naisali was the Director of the South Pacific Bureau for Economic Co-operation (SPEC) from January 1986 to September 1988; he continued as Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) until January 1992, following the formation of the PIF as successor of the SPEC.{{cite web |title= Executive Heads of The Secretariat |publisher= Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat |date= 28 June 2017 |url= http://www.forumsec.org/pages.cfm/about-us/our-history/history-of-executive-heads-of-secretariat.html?printerfriendly=true |access-date= 24 June 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171107165400/http://www.forumsec.org/pages.cfm/about-us/our-history/history-of-executive-heads-of-secretariat.html?printerfriendly=true |archive-date= 7 November 2017 |url-status= dead }}
Honours
Naisali was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1975 Birthday Honours,United Kingdom list: {{London Gazette |date=6 June 1975 |supp=y |issue=46593 |pages=7388 }} a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in the 1983 New Year Honours,Tuvalu list: {{London Gazette |issue=49219 |date=30 December 1982 |pages=61–62 |supp=y |nolink=yes}} and an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in February 1992, "for service to Australian/Pacific Island relations, particularly as Secretary General to the South Pacific Forum."{{cite web |title=Mr Henry Faati NAISALI, CMG, MBE |url=https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/882072 |website=Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet |access-date=30 December 2024}}
References
{{reflist|30em}}
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{{s-bef|before=Toalipi Lauti}}
{{s-ttl|title=Minister of Finance of Tuvalu|years=1981–1986}}
{{s-aft|after=Kitiseni Lopati}}
{{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Naisali, Henry}}
Category:Members of the Parliament of Tuvalu
Category:Deputy prime ministers of Tuvalu
Category:Ministers of finance of Tuvalu
Category:Government ministers of Tuvalu
Category:Gilbert and Ellice Islands people
Category:Secretaries general of the Pacific Islands Forum
Category:Tuvaluan Officers of the Order of the British Empire
Category:Tuvaluan Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George