More than 20 Town and District Officers from Tonga are visiting Hainan Province in China to attend a two-week seminar on administration. The seminar, specifically designed for them, is being held from 16-29 April in Haikou City.

Aimed at strengthening local governance through international cooperation, the seminar was officially opened yesterday 16 April.

The group from Tonga includes 25 Town Officers and four District Officers from the outer islands of ʻEua, Haʻapai, and Vavaʻu. Two officials from the Prime Minister's Office Local Government Division are supporting them.

"These officers play a key role in frontline governance, delivering policies and programs that directly impact communities across Tonga," the Tonga Prime Minister's Office stated today.

The capacity-building initiative is sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China and organised by the International Cooperation and Exchange Centre of the Department of Commerce of Hainan Province.