The ITF is delighted to announce the appointment of Vaito’a Toelupe as Capacity Building Officer. She is a proud Fa’afafine from the villages of Malie and Vailele in the Heart of Polynesia, Samoa. Vaito’a has over ten years’ experience in community and social development, civil society engagement, resource mobilization, capacity building and advocacy.
Vaito’a has served in both government and civil society sectors. She was a member of the ITF’s Grant Making Panel (GMP) and the Technical Advisor to the Samoa Fa’afafine Association (SFA). Before joining the ITF, she was the Chief Executive Officer of the Civil Society Support Programme (CSSP), a funding mechanism for the coordination of development funds to civil society in partnership with the Government of Samoa, World Bank, European Union, Government of Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and the British High Commission. She has experience as a Private Consultant under T&T Consult with USAID, Asian Development Bank, UNDP Global Fund, UNFPA, Asia Pacific Forum and the Pacific Community (SPC).
Vaito’a has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in International Relations and Foreign Policies from the University of Auckland. She is a fearless custodian of the Fa’afafine Identity and passionate advocate for indigenous and traditional identities within the global trans movement.
As Capacity Building Officer, Vaito’a will be supporting the development of ITF’s capacity-building strategy and will work directly with grantee partners and the broader trans movement on capacity-building initiatives.
We are thrilled to welcome Vaito’a to our team! She can be reached at [email protected]
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