A top Samoan utilities executive has been appointed Chairperson of the Pacific Water and Wastewater Association (P.W.W.A.).

The Chief Executive Officer of the Samoa Water Authority (S.W.A.), Seugamaalii Jammie Saena, was appointed during the 5^th Pacific Water Ministers Forum and 12^th Pacific Water and Wastewater Conference and Expo held in Port Vila Vanuatu at the beginning of the month.

The appointment, confirmed in a statement by the P.W.W.A. Secretariat, was made when P.W.W.A. members appointed its new Board of Directors to serve for the next three years.  

Seugamali’i is joined on the Board of Directors by another Samoan woman, Ruth Ueselani, the Assistant C.E.O. Water Coordination Sector of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (M.N.R.E.). She is the Alternate Secretary.

The new Board under the leadership of Seugamaali’i commenced working immediately for a three-year term ending in 2022.

The Pacific Water and Wastewater Association is a not-for-profit membership body established in 1994. 

It was permanently established in Apia, Samoa as an international organisation in 2017 following the signing of a Host Agreement with the government of Samoa. 

Currently its membership comprise 31 water and wastewater utilities from 21 member countries of the Pacific; 70 allied members comprising water and wastewater companies, service providers, contractors and consultant companies from the region and throughout the world; water professionals joining as Individuals; and non-voting affiliated members comprising development partners and donors, and water Associations from around the world.  

The new Board of Directors comprise: Chairperson – Seugamaali’i Jammie Saena, C.E.O. Samoa Water Authority; Deputy Chairperson –Raka Taviri, C.E.O. Water PNG; Treasurer – Jim Keary, Senior Fellow Hunter H2O Pty Ltd, Australia; Secretary - Erickson Sammy, Director Department of Water Resources Vanuatu; Alternate Treasurer –Diane Charlie-Puna, Secretary Infrastructure Cook Islands; Alternate Secretary –Ruth Ueselani, Assistant C.E.O. Water Coordination Sector MNRE Samoa; Ian Gooden – C.E.O. Solomon Island Water Authority; Gary Aitchison – Export Manager, Hydroflow New Zealand; Ken Klein – Executive Sales Manager Export, A.C.O. Pty Ltd Australia; Joseph Batol – C.E.O. Majuro Water Marshall Islands.