Britain's Princess Royal, HRH Princess Anne (59), will visit Tonga from March 20-23 to attend part of the study tour program of the Emerging Pacific Leaders Dialogue 2010, a regional leadership development program.

The program that brings together 120 mid-career men and women from across the Pacific will open in Samoa on March 11 and close in Tonga on March 23.

Mishka Tu'ifua the Chairperson of the Emerging Pacific Leaders Tonga Steering Committee confirmed on Tuesday, March 9, that HRH Princess Anne is expected to be in Tonga for the two-day closing ceremony, after visiting New Zealand.

Mishka said that seven Tongans were selected from across the public and private sector to participate in the conference. The Tongan participants who left for Samoa on Tuesday night were Talita Tu'ipulotu, Siale 'Ilolahia, Sione 'Akau'ola, Vanessa Heleta, Tuna Likiliki, Mele 'Amanaki and Dr 'Ungatea Kata.

The participating individuals who are already emerging leaders in their own fields are given the opportunity to improve their skills through the exposure touring to other Pacific countries, and networking with other professionals.

"This is an opportunity to network with other people from our diverse Pacific culture to share ideas on what more we can do for our countries in all areas of development," said Talita Tu'ipulotu an Assistant Secretary at the Tonga Royal Constituency Boundaries Commission, the youngest of the Tongan participants.

Study Tour

From March 13-21 the Study Tour program would divide participants into ten groups consisting of 13 members. Each group would visit a separate Pacific island ranging from Australia, New Zealand, Kiribati, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, and Samoa before coming to Tonga for the closing.

The participants are expected to present reports in the Closing Session to HRH Princess Anne in Nuku'alofa.

Established under the Commonwealth Study Conferences (Australia) Inc. the program is funded particularly by the New Zealand and Australian Governments with sponsorships from governments and private sectors from across the Pacific.

The theme of the EPLD 2010 is "Navigating our Future Together" and will focus on the significance of leadership in the context of relevant sub-themes including sustainable economic growth; regional co-operation and infrastructure; good governance; security; stability; strengthening communities; environment; industry; education and health.

The founder of the Commonwealth Study Conferences is HRH the Duke of Edinburgh, who has said that, "the objective is for members to look, listen and learn in the hope that the process will help them to improve the quality of their decision-making when they reach the peaks of their occupations."