New COVID-19 cases reported in New Zealand and Australia have forced the Tongan Government to defer repatriation flights from those countries for this month.
According to MEIDECC CEO, Paula Ma’u there are still community cases in Auckland and Queensland.
New dates may be scheduled for October once dates are confirmed by the National Emergency Committee.
Tonga permitted a repatriation flight from Vanuatu last month which brought in 14 Chinese nationals who were based in Vanuatu since June 2021.
They were approved by the Government to implement a development project having fulfilled the strict requirements required.
Repatriation flights from Fiji remain suspended due to the Delta variant of COVID-19 cases in the country.
There are 2608 Tongan nationals and residents, who are currently stranded overseas.
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