Results for Tonga

On a little stage in Nuku’alofa, a powerful resonating message has emerged from a small group of young performers who, in raising awareness of climate change, are urging everyone to take heed of the imminent danger.

The first ever shipment of Tongan squash to China left Tonga this week, after Tongatapu exporter Nishi Trading successfully passed a strict quarantine inspection on Saturday, 26 November 2016. This important achievement took 18 months of negotiation and inspections leading to an initial protocol between the Governments of China and Tonga in May. This initiative was supported by PHAMA - the Pacific Horticultural & Agricultural Market Access Program.

Growth in cargo volumes and the number of ships calling at the Port of Nuku’alofa, as well as operating efficiencies has resulted in a record dividend of $$1,617,862 for the financial year 2015/16 for the Ports Authority of Tonga. The dividend was declared by the Board of Directors on 1 December 2016, during their Annual General Meeting in Nuku'alofa, when the Chairman Mr Stephen Edwards, presented a dividend cheque to the Minister for Public Enterprises, Poasi Mataele Tei, for the shareholder, the Government of Tonga.

By not shaving their moustaches for a month, a group of local gentlemen dedicated themselves to raising donations for the Child Cancer Foundation Tonga (CCFT). Ten men started to grow beards on November 1 but only four lasted without shaving until the end of the month.

Tonga could expect two to three cyclones this season, and Tonga Met says there's a chance that at least one of them could be a Severe Tropical Cyclone (Category 3 and above). The current cyclone season began on 1 November and runs through to the end of April 2017.

The skipper of a whale watching boat, the 'Ha’apai Explorer" was injured when its engine exploded at sea on Saturday, November 26. The boat with two foreign passengers on board, was on its way back to Pangai from Limu Island in the Ha’apai Group when the accident happened.

Police have released the names of the four Tongan men who died when the fishing vessel 'Francie' capsized in Auckland’s Kaipara Harbour on Saturday November 26.

Tonga's unemployment statistics are grim, with youth unemployment reaching as high as 40% in rural areas, according to some estimates. The Tonga Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship (TYEE), a Non-Government Organisation that was set up due to the high rate of unemployment in Tonga, has helped 175 young people gain employment. TYEE celebrated its second anniversary on Friday, November 25.

One man and two women, all of Tongan heritage, are facing jail sentences for beating a security guard unconscious at a bar in Maui, Hawaii last month. They have been accused of kicking the guard in the head several times as he was lying on the ground. The guard was transported to hospital where he recovered. Doctors said the injuries could have been life threatening.