By Tupou Vaipulu Jr

Tongan students at the University of the South Pacific graduated on Friday, with a colourful ceremony held at the Tonga High Stadium in Nuku’alofa.

About 174 students from around Tonga graduated with degrees in Science, Law, Commerce, Business, Agriculture, and Education.

The Chancellor of the University, King Tupou VI attended the ceremony to formally confer the degrees and award the diplomas and certificates of the graduates.

The graduate speaker, Miss Fuatino Tangitau receiver her Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Pacific Policy and Politics, and International Affairs.

Fuatino highlighted the how graduates overcame challenges during their academic journey including COVID-19 and the HTHH volcanic eruption and tsunami.

“When we embarked on the first years of our degrees, Covid restrictions took away our tertiary learning experience and independence replacing it with guidelines and curfews, which made access to classes and resources difficult,” she said.

“Just as we adjusted to these covid obstacles and settled into a new school life routine and norms, the HTHH volcano erupted –with power outages and limited internet (that followed), some of us often found ourselves sitting beside the road just to get a connection.”

Fuatino congratulated her fellow graduates. She hails from the villages of Saineai and Falaleu in Vava’u.

Academics, high government officials, members of the diplomatic corps, families and friends were present at the ceremony to celebrate the graduating class.