Hon. Hu'akavameiliku is leading Tonga’s delegation to a UN High-level meeting, today, 19 September, in New York City.

The 78^th Session of the United Nations General Assembly’s general debate (UNGA 78), was opened by the UNGA President, Dennis Francis of Trinidad and Tobago.

This meeting brought together world leaders with the goal to find new solutions to address the most pressing global challenges. For Tonga, those challenges are Climate Change and Oceans.

The theme for UNGA 78 is ‘Reigniting global solidarity, accelerating actions on the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs towards peace, prosperity, progress and sustainability for all’.

Bilateral Meetings

Meanwhile, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon Fekita 'Utoikamanu held a bilateral meeting with the permanent representative of Greece to the United Nations, HE Mrs Maria Theofili. They discussed opportunities to enhance bilateral cooperation, including maritime security.

She also held a bilateral meeting with representatives from Ghana, where they discussed areas of cooperation as members of the Commonwealth family.

SDG Summit

However, the Prime Minister urged state members in a high-level SDG Summit on the 18 September, to join Tonga in harnessing the power of science, technology, innovation and date (STID) to speed up the progress in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Tonga is utilizing solar and wind energy to reduce the need for and use of fossil fuels, improving energy security and employing digital technologies to improve access to education and healthcare.

Tonga also began using satellite data to monitor and manage marine resources, to address IUU Fishing and creating better warning systems for natural disasters.