The Voice of Christ Full Gospel Church in Samoa has chosen Faavaina Tilo as its new president at a church board meeting.
She is believed to be the first woman to head a church in the South Pacific.
Mrs Tilo follows in the footsteps of her late husband with whom she founded the church 40 years ago.
Voice of Christ has nearly 4-thousand members, mostly Samoans in New Zealand, Australia, the two Samoas and in the US.
