A new economic agreement with the Government of China was signed by Tonga's caretaker government last Friday.

The “Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement” was signed on 8 December by Minister of Finance and National Planning, Dr Pohiva Tu’ionetoa on behalf of the Tonga Government.  

The Embassy of China, said in a statement, that the agreement implements the building of a $57.5 million pa’anga sporting complex at Tonga High School ($US24.8 million) and other aid projects.

Caretaker Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva approved the building of the Tonga High sporting complex on November 3 after signing a review of the building’s design with a Beijing based Architectual company (Beijing Institute of Architectural Design Group).

The Embassy stated that Dr. Tui'onetoa had expressed his appreciation for China's support for Tonga's economic and social development, "believing that the bilateral agreement and the sports project will help improve Tonga's sports facilities, boost its sports development and encourage more active and healthier lifestyles for the Tongan people.”

It added “H.E. Wang Baodong commented that the coming year of 2018 will usher in the 20^th anniversary of diplomatic ties between our two countries, and China will work closely with Tonga to expand bilateral exchanges and cooperation and break new ground in the China-Tonga strategic partnership featuring mutual respect and common development to bring more benefits to the two peoples.”