Tongan dentists on the Malimali Program, a preventative dental health care currently implemented for primary school children in Tonga visitedJapan last month.

The Malimali Program is a joint project between Japan’s International Cooperation Association (JICA), the South Pacific Medical Team (SPMT) and the dental department of Tonga’s Ministry of Health.

Tonga’s Ambassador to Japan HE Tania Tupou met with Dr Sisilia Fifita and Salote Tu’iniua a dental therapist from Tonga and Dr Koji Kawamura and Dr Sayuri Kawamura of SPMT on 2 June at Tonga's Embassy Tokyo, for the review and update of the work. Phase Two will be completed this year.

Malimali dental health in educating youth about correct foods for the teeth is linked to the challenges of combating Non-Communicable Diseases in Tonga.

Dr Fifita made a presentation about the Mallimali Program at the 65^th General Meeting of the Japanese society for Oral Health and the 12^th International Conference Asian Academy of Preventive Dentistry in Tokyo on May 27-29.

She also took part in short term training programs on oral health outreach at the Kawamura dental office and visited several kindergartens and disability schools in Kawaguchi.

Meanwhile, Salote who came from Prince Wellington Ngu Hospital in Vava'u took part in the 10^th Biennial Conference of the Pediatric Dentistry Association of Asia and 54^th Annual Conference of Japanese Society of Pediatric Dentistry from May 26-28.

Both women also lectured at the Japan Association of International Cooperation for Oral Health (JAICOH) on May 22, on the SPMT Malimali activities in Tonga.

In Tonga, the program has incorporated the teaching of hand washing and daily short exercises on radio to primary schools while developing manuals of periodontal diseas to be distributed to high schools.

The bilateral relations between Tonga and Japan span different areas, including health, stated Tonga's Embassy in Tokyo.