An El Niño alert for Tonga was issued by the Meteorology Department, on 14 July, as forecasts show there is a 70% chance of El Niño forming this year. The likely impacts on Tonga will include cooler nights, less rainfall over the next 6-12 months, and more tropical cyclones in the next cyclone season from 1 November 2023 to 30 April 2024.
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Results for Pacific Islands
Friday 14 July 2023
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Washington D.C., U.S.A
As critical talks on deeply-contested deep-sea mining continue in Jamaica this week, scientists fear the impacts of mining the seabed on the marine environment and wider climate, says the National Geographic Society Pristine Seas programme in a statement today.
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Wednesday 12 July 2023
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Chinese diplomats in the Pacific are critical of a decision by the Japanese government to dispose of nuclear-contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant accident by discharging it into the sea. They rejected the conclusions of a report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on 4 July.
Wednesday 12 July 2023
Suva, Fiji
Civil society groups in the Pacific Islands have collectively expressed concern that Japan is proceeding with its plan to discharge over a million tonnes of ALPS treated radioactive waste water into the Pacific Ocean, starting this year.
Tuesday 11 July 2023
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A program that aims to improve digital governance and empower citizens in the Pacific region, was launched by the United Nations Development Programme in Nuku’alofa, Tonga on 6 July.
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Tuesday 11 July 2023
Majuro, Marshall Islands
The annual Forum Fisheries Committee Ministerial 20 (FFCMIN20) and the Regional Fisheries Ministers Meeting 4 (RFMM4) was held in Majuro, Marshall Islands, from 3-6 July. It focused on areas to improve the management and development of the tuna fisheries resources and the fisheries waters of its members.
Wednesday 28 June 2023
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Wellington, New Zealand
A group of Pacific states known as 6-PAC, is leading the call for the shipping industry to align itself with the 1.5 degrees climate target, 28 June.
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Wednesday 28 June 2023
Manila, Philippines
An $8 million grant to the Government of Kiribati was disbursed by the Asian Development Bank to help fund drought relief efforts.
Saturday 24 June 2023
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The Governor General of Australia, Hon. David Hurley reaffirmed Australia's ties with Tonga, after visiting for the first time on Friday, 23 June.
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Wednesday 21 June 2023
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A fifth P-SIDS Regional and Capacity Development workshop and a high level panel for sustainable management of seabed minerals of the Blue Pacific Continent is being held this week in Nuku'alofa.
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Monday 19 June 2023
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The Secretary General of the International Seabed Authority Mr. Michael Lodge is in Nuku’alofa.
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Friday 16 June 2023
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Law enforcement officials across four Pacific Islands from Tonga, Palau, Papua New Guinea to Samoa participated in a multi-agency tabletop exercise to strengthen national and regional cooperation.
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Tuesday 13 June 2023
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Wellington, New Zealand
A barrister of Tongan-Irish descent, Tania Margaret Sharkey, has been appointed a District Court Judge in New Zealand.
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Friday 9 June 2023
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Suva, Fiji
Pacific journalists were acknowledged in a 'Pasifika Environews Awards' for their exemplary reporting on environment, ocean and climate change, during a World Ocean Day celebration on 8 June.
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Thursday 8 June 2023
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Suva, Fiji
A total of Euro €2.7 million has been pledged as part of a collaboration between the Kingdom of Denmark and the Pacific Community (SPC) to help in addressing loss and damage caused by climate change. Crown Princess Mary of Denmark attended the signing in Suva.
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Wednesday 7 June 2023
Wellington, New Zealand
Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka was welcomed by New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins at Parliament, Wellington on 7 June, after more than 25-years since he last officially visited the country in 1998.
Tuesday 6 June 2023
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A newly upgraded Pacific Islands Pest List Database (PLD) was introduced at a regional workshop in Fiji, attended by Tonga’s Head of Quarantine and Quality Management Division, from 29 May to 2 June. The PLD has a record of more than 26,000 pest occurrences, but Tonga's input needs updating, Siutoni Tupou said.
Tuesday 6 June 2023
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A two day educational webinar for World Ocean Day will be hosted tomorrow 7 June and on 9 June by Marine Studies, at the University of the South Pacific, Fiji
Tuesday 30 May 2023
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Prime Minister, Hon Hu'akavameiliku heads Tonga's delegation to the 2023 Korea Pacific Islands Summit, in Seoul, Republic of Korea, on Monday 29 May, 2023.
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Friday 26 May 2023
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Tonga's Prime Minister Hon. Hu’akavameiliku expressed concern about the stalled progress in achieving the Sendai outcomes by Pacific Island Countries, in a High-Level Meeting on the Mid-Term Review of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (HLM) in New York last week.
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Tonga weather forecast from yr.no, delivered by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and the NRK. See also Fua'amotu Weather Forecasting Center, Tonga, for latest local weather bulletin.