Dr Halafihi was appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the Ministry of Fisheries in Tonga on June 2016. He oversees the overall operations for the Ministry of Fisheries, covering Fisheries Science, Fisheries Compliance, Fisheries Management and Development, Corporate Services and Project Management Unit. He has extensive fisheries experience since he became a Senior Fisheries Officer at the Ministry of Fisheries in 2005. He continued diligently serving as Principal Fisheries Officer and Deputy CEO for the Fisheries Science Division. Dr Halafihi has achieved great strides as CEO with the establishment of the new (standalone) Ministry of Fisheries, successfully commenced implementation of the Tonga Fisheries Sector Plan, development of the Tonga National Fisheries Policy and recently, the preparation and approval of the World Bank funding proposal- Pacific Island Regional Oceanscape Program (PROP) which is now Tonga: Pathway to Sustainable Oceans project (Tongafish Pathway). He has Bachelor’s degree in Physics and Chemistry, a Master’s in Chemistry and a PhD in Marine Biology and Ecology.