Tonga

“I am very pleased to welcome PM Pohiva to New Zealand on his first official visit as Prime Minister,” Key says.

“New Zealand and Tonga have a strong relationship, built around our long history of cooperation and the significant Tongan population in New Zealand.

“As one of our closest neighbours, working together to advance Tonga’s development objectives with support from our aid programme is a key priority,” Key says.

Pohiva will visit New Zealand between 27 – 30 July and will be formally welcomed in a ceremony at Government House in Auckland on 28 July.

RNZ reports the aim is to cut the country's reliance on meat imports by ten percent each year.

The deputy chair of the Agriculture Growth Committee, Pousima Afeaki, says they want to increase livestock farming of sheep, pigs, poultry and ducks over the next five years.

The chief‘s remains was flown from Hawaii, via New Zealand.

Even the Te‘ekiu GPS (Government Primary School) was reprieved of their afternoon studies. The entire 107 boys and girls performed a very simple, but necessary civic dutie: lining the road from their school for a funeral procession. Their parents were spectators, but they were also doing their civic duty of attending this afternoon events.

This follows a joint presentation of it’s Agriculture Sector Plan and official launch of the Tonga Agriculture Policy Bank in the capital Nuku’alofa on Friday.

Dr. Eke highlighted this while opening the Government and Development Partners Forum meeting this week.

Tonga’s target for this year includes improving capacity in terms of investment in infrastructure and others and also for the economy to grow.

The assistance was marked by the President of the FWC schools – Dr. Mele’anga Puloka.

Speaking to Radio Tonga News, the school principal Rev. Tu’ipulotu Finau says, this is one of the biggest donations the school have received and they are thankful and grateful.

Handing down a five year sentence to the 17 year old accused, Hon. Justice Cato said the trauma of the rape had seriously affected both the complainant and her husband, reports Kaniva News.

He said the baby had not been harmed.

Deputy Director of the Pacific Community, Audrey Aumua said the tissue culture for the five crops – banana, pineapple, Irish potato and sweet potato assist efforts by the Government of Tonga to address food and nutrition security challenges.

The tissue culture of the climate resilient crops were obtained from the Pacific Community’s Centre for Pacific Crops and Trees (CePaCT). 

RNZ reports the Defence Force is in Tonga to lead the humanitarian and disaster relief exercise Tropic Twilight which includes engineers from Tonga, China, and The United States.

Lieutenant Colonel Josh Wineera said the Ha'apai group was devastated by the cyclone and water installation is a much needed requirement.

"There's a number of community halls and churches where we've been able to use our engineers to bring in and just assistance with some of those plumbing and some of those engineering type tasks."

Lieutenant Aidan Bilbe from the Royal New Zealand Army Medical Corps said many students in primary and secondary schools in Lifuka expressed a wish to join the military during a recent visit by military personnel taking part in Exercise Tropic Twilight 2016.