| Timi Melei | |
| Honorific-Suffix: | MP |
| Office1: | Minister for Education, Youth & Sports |
| Term Start1: | 19 September 2019 |
| Term End1: | 27 February 2024 |
| Primeminister1: | Kausea Natano |
| Predecessor1: | Fauoa Maani |
| Office2: | Member of Parliament |
| Term Start2: | 9 September 2019 |
| Predecessor2: | Maatia Toafa |
| Constituency2: | Nanumea |
| Party: | Independent |
| Alma Mater: | Victoria University of Wellington |
Timi Melei is a Tuvaluan politician.
Melei worked as an officer of the Tuvalu Police Force. He did not attend secondary school as a teenager, but returned at age eighteen to learn English. He later studied at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, graduating in 2016 with a Masters in Criminology.[1]
He was elected to the Parliament of Tuvalu at the 2019 Tuvaluan general election,[2] and appointed Minister for Education, Youth & Sports in the cabinet of Kausea Natano.[3]
During his term as minister the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, launched the Tuvalu Learning Project (TuLEP) to strengthen the quality of education and service delivery for pre-school children. This five-year project, which commenced in 2020, was funded by a grant of US$14 million from the World Bank, with the project including: training of teachers; resourcing of pre-school centers with learning materials, age-appropriate readers and playgroup kits. TuLEP also includes funding for internet connectivity in all outer island schools to facilitate online learning and communications.[4]
He was appointed as a Member of Council of the University of the South Pacific.[5]
He was re-elected in the 2024 Tuvaluan general election.[6] [7]