A parliamentary briefing to inform Tonga’s Civil Society Organizations about the national budget and its process was held on 29 May at the Tanoa Hotel, Nuku’alofa.

The budget briefing was organized by the Legislative Assembly of Tonga for the first time. Information was shared on the way budget was debated in Parliament, and on the content of the budget itself.

Speaker of Parliament, Lord Fakafanua said the more information that is made available to citizens and CSOs to allow for their full participation in the process, the more open and transparent our governance systems might become.

President of the Tonga CSO Forum, Drew Havea, who attended the briefing said he found it “very useful, to see the process and the thinking behind the budget”.

However, “the challenge is how to now make this easier for the people to understand and participate in the process.”

More than 35 participants from 18 CSOs attended the briefing including Tupou Research Institute, Women and Children Crisis Centre Tonga, Tonga Public Service Association, Lavame’a Ta’e’iloa Disabled People Association Inc., Tonga National Youth Congress, Tonga Family Health Association, Fo’i Tuluta – Ha’atafu Community, Tonga Nurse Association, Naunau ‘o e ‘Alamaite Tonga Association Inc., Tonga Community Development Trust, Tonga National Centre for Women and Children, the Civil Society Forum of Tonga, Ma’a Fafine mo e Fanau, Kolomotu’a Town Council, and Tonga Red Cross among others.

The briefing was supported by the UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji, through the Strengthening Public Finance Management and Governance in the Pacific Project funded by the European Union (EU), and the Pacific Parliamentary Effectiveness Initiative funded by the Government of New Zealand.