By Katalina Siasau
It is essential for the Government to secure its own financial resources in order to strengthen long-term development capacity, Japan's Ambassador to Tonga, HE Inagaki Hisao, told the National Development Summit on Friday.
Panelists from the diplomatic corps of New Zealand, Australia, Japan, and China in Tonga talked about Collaboration and Partnership, duringt the final session of the summit on 21 March, at the Fa’onelua Convention Center in Nuku'alofa.
HE Inagaki Hisao observed that the current Tongan economy, relies heavily on remittances from Tongans living overseas and development assistance from development partners.
“In order to strengthen long-term development capacity, it is essential for the Government to secure their own financial resources. This may be a tough message for the government, but the Government should secure their own development funds by increasing tax revenue, for example, by imposing a gift tax on a certain amount of overseas remittances or by increasing the consumption tax rate,” he said.
He suggested that the Government could then allocate such funds to education and health, which are considered effective areas for long-term national development.
Additionally, he urged the Government to support the development of the private sector, which "shall create domestic jobs in a sustainable manner so that people don’t need to work overseas." Ambassador Inagaki is the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the Kingdom of Tonga.
Panelists also talked about their respective development aid projects to Tonga.
The summit, led by the government, gathered over 200 participants. HRH Crown Prince Tupouto’a ‘Ulukalala and Crown Princess Sinaitakala Tuku’aho attended, with Cabinet members, development partners, government ministries, CSOs, and members of the public.
The Crown Prince expressed his appreciation to the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers for hosting the summit, and for their leadership and commitment to inclusivity.
Participants discussed issues that will contribute to the nation's sustainable development framework, the Tonga Strategic Development Framework (TSDF) III, for 2026-2036.
The four-day summit included 13 sessions covering key areas such as economic development, climate change, infrastructure and technology, culture, education, security and illicit drugs, and other important topics.
