Rural Project New Program Manager: Jaiyah Saelua

The OVW Rural Project Alliance’s newest programs. The project is focused on finding ways to recognize violence against fa’afafine & fa’atama, to find resources that will help victims heal from violence committed against them.  After months, we have been able to hire personnel to focus solely on this project. The new program manager is Jaiyah Saelua, and the program coordinator is Uni Tanielu, the current Miss SOFIAS.
Jaiyah Saelua was born to Fiu & Catherine Saelua from the village of Leone. She identifies as a fa’afafine & transgender woman. She has a passion for football, advocacy, cleaning, traveling & spending time with her family.

Jaiyah is best known as the world’s first (out) transgender person to play in a FIFA-sanctioned tournament, in 2011 when the American Samoa Men’s National Football team competed at the Oceania Football Confederation’s 1st qualifying stage for the 2014 FIFA World Cup – Brazil. She has since used her platform to raise awareness on the existence of indigenous SOGIE-based identities, elevating the significance of the Samoan fa’afafine identity, and helped shape international policies that is inclusive of LGBTQI+ athletes around the world. In 2011, Archer’s Mark, a British Film Company, filmed the American Samoa’s National Football Team during the Pacific Games in New Caledonia & the World Cup Qualifiers in Samoa. The documentary, called “Next Goal Wins”, premiered at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival, and has won “Best Documentary” in Japan, Abu Dhabi, and at the 2015 BAFTA. In 2019, renowned Māori Hollywood director, Taika Waititi, created an adaptation of the same name, with an actress named Kaimana portraying Jaiyah. “Next Goal Wins” by Waititi premiered in 2023 at the Toronto International Film Festival, and across the world from November 2023 to February 2024.
 
Jaiyah’s visibility & narrative have landed her in various magazines, newspapers, radio, internet & television shows, most notably on the cover of the September 2016 issue of FIFA Magazine. Jaiyah moved home to take care of her uncle & grandmother, who have both passed on. Jaiyah joins us as a fresh mind at the beginning of a new objective, and we are thrilled to have her on our team. We are excited to see where her journey leads our collective efforts in creating, developing and maintaining safe spaces for our fa’afafine, fa’atama & SOGIE-based communities. Please help us in welcoming the esteemed Jaiyah Saelua.

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