CAPTION: Chairman of the Public Service Commission, Mr Josefa Serulagilagi.
MINFO
The Chairman of the Public Service Commission, Mr Josefa Serulagilagi today announced the appointments of Mr Amena Yauvoli as the new Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Corporation and Mrs Saipora Mataikabara as Permanent Secretary Functional and Regulatory Review based with the Public Service Commission.
Commenting on the appointments, Mr Serulagilagi said that both Mr Yauvoli and Mrs Mataikabara were experienced and dedicated officers who were well versed in matters relating to public service management and administration.
“They have the appropriate professional skills and knowledge and will be able to provide sound advice to Government in their new roles.”
Mr Yauvoli joins the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with 25 years of work experience in both the Fiji Public Service and regional organisations.
Having started as a graduate Economist in 1988 with the Ministry of Finance and National Planning, Mr Yauvoli was promoted to chief economist in 1997 before serving as deputy permanent representative in the Fiji Mission to the United Nations in New York from 2000 to 2003.
He was appointed as permanent secretary Commerce, Industry, Investment and Communication in March 2007.
In 2008, Mr Yauvoli resigned from the service to take up the position of Director – Secretariat of the Pacific Community North Pacific Regional Office in the Federated States of Micronesia where he served until his appointment as permanent secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
The outgoing permanent secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mrs Saipora Mataikabara joined the civil service in 1999 from the Reserve Bank as a principal economic planning officer in the Ministry of Finance.
She was later promoted to chief planning officer with the Ministry of Regional and Provincial Development in 2002 before taking up the post of deputy secretary, Industry and Trade in 2010.
In June 2010, Mrs Mataikabara was promoted to permanent secretary Industry and Trade and was later posted as permanent secretary Foreign Affairs and External Trade in September 2011 where she served before her current posting to the Public Service Commission as permanent secretary for Functional and Regulatory Review.
Mrs Mataikabara will report to the chairman of the PSC and is required to review the achievements of the PSC Functional Review Team.
She will also undertake research and consultations to establish the overlapping functions which can be removed amongst the ministries and departments.
In addition, she will undertake a review of existing regulations and identify the rules and procedures which inhibit the development of enterprise, innovations and investment.
Recommendations will also be made on the removal of or improvements to such regulations which would be pro-business, pro-enterprise and consumer responsive.
She will prepare action plans and costings to remove redundant regulations or make recommendations to make them more business friendly.
Both appointments are effective from Monday 7th January, 2013.