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Economy of Tonga

Tonga's economy is characterized by a large non-monetary sector and a heavy dependence on remittances from the more than half of the country's population that lives abroad, chiefly in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. Much of the monetary sector of the economy is dominated, if not owned, by the royal family and nobles. Many small businesses, particularly in the retail sector on Tongatapu, are owned by recent Chinese immigrants who arrived under a cash-for-passports scheme ended in 1998. Royal-owned and Chinese businesses were among those targeted in the November 2006 rioting.

The manufacturing sector consists of handicrafts and a few other very small-scale industries, which together contribute only about 7% of GDP. Commercial business activities are to a large extent dominated by large trading companies found throughout the South Pacific. In September 1974, the country's first commercial trading bank, the Bank of Tonga, opened. Following the destruction of the capital's commercial center in the November 2006 riots, government, business, and international donors have combined forces to support the reconstruction of Nuku'alofa.

Rural Tongans rely on plantation and subsistence agriculture. Root crops such as cassava and yams, kava, vanilla beans, and squash are the major cash crops. Pigs and poultry are the major types of livestock. Horses are kept for draft purposes, primarily by farmers working their api. More cattle are being raised, and beef imports are declining. Fisheries are also a growing export sector, with tuna, beche de mer, and seaweed being the major marine export products.

Tonga's development plans emphasize a growing private sector, upgrading agricultural productivity, revitalizing the squash and vanilla bean industries, developing tourism, and improving the island's communications and transportation systems. Substantial progress has been made, but much work remains to be done. A small but growing construction sector is developing in response to the inflow of aid monies and remittances from Tongans abroad. Government, international development agencies, and major donor nations have together identified a number of promising means to diversity the Tongan economy. One hope is seen in fisheries; tests have shown that sufficient skipjack tuna pass through Tongan waters to support a fishing industry. Another potential development activity is exploitation of forests, which cover 35% of the kingdom's land area. Plantation coconut trees past their prime bearing years also provide a potential source of lumber.

Economy (all figures in U.S. dollars)
GDP (2009): $319.24 million.
Per capita GDP (2009): $3,103.
GDP real growth rate (2010): -1.2%.
Natural resources: Fish.
Agriculture (19% of GDP): Products--root crops, squash, vanilla, kava, fish and other marine products.
Industry: 18.1% of GDP.
Services (2009): 62.9% of GDP.
Trade (2008-2009): Exports--$5.5 million: fish, root crops, vanilla, kava, squash. Major export markets--New Zealand, U.S. ($3 million), Australia, Japan, Fiji. Imports--$130.1 million: fuels, minerals and chemicals, food products, machinery and transport services equipment. Major import sources--New Zealand, Fiji, U.S. ($13 million), Australia, China.
Fiscal year: July 1 to June 30.

Geography of Tonga

Location: Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Geographic coordinates: 20 00 S, 175 00 W
Map references: Oceania
Area:
total area: 748 sq km
land area: 718 sq km
comparative area: four times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 419 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: none
Climate: tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December)
Terrain: most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: on Kao Island 1,033 m
Natural resources: fish, fertile soil
Land use:
arable land: 25%
permanent crops: 55%
meadows and pastures: 6%
forest and woodland: 12%
other: 2%
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Environment:
current issues: deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations
natural hazards: cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou
international agreements: party to - Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Law of the Sea
Geographic note: archipelago of 170 islands (36 inhabited)

 

Government of Tonga

Tonga is the South Pacific's last Polynesian kingdom. Its executive branch includes the prime minister and the cabinet, which becomes the Privy Council when presided over by the monarch. In intervals between legislative sessions, the Privy Council makes ordinances, which become law if confirmed by the legislature. Prior to November 2010 elections, the unicameral Legislative Assembly was dominated by the royal family and nobles. It consisted of nine nobles elected by the 33 hereditary nobles of Tonga; nine people's representatives elected by universal adult suffrage for 3-year terms; and the cabinet of 12-14 ministers, appointed by the monarch. The governors of Ha'apai and Vava'u are appointed to their offices and serve as ex officio members of the cabinet. The Legislative Assembly sits for 4 or 5 months a year.

Tonga's court system consists of the Privy Council, the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court, the Magistrates' Court, and the Land Court. Judges are appointed by the monarch.

The only form of local government is through town and district officials who have been popularly elected since 1965. The town official represents the central government in the villages; the district official has authority over a group of villages.

Principal Government Officials
Monarch--King Siaosi Tupou V
Prime Minister--Siale'ataonga Tu'ivakano
Ambassador to the United States--Sonatane Tu'akinamolahi Taumoepeau-Tupou

Tonga maintains an embassy at 250 East 51st Street, New York, New York 10022 (tel: 917-369-1136; fax: 917-369-1024). In addition, Tonga has a Consulate General in San Francisco.

POLITICAL CONDITIONS
For most of the 20th century Tonga was quiet, inward-looking, and somewhat isolated from developments elsewhere in the world. The Tongans, as a whole, continue to cling to many of their old traditions, including a respect for the nobility. However, an increasingly popular pro-democracy movement is articulating a rising demand for more rights for the common people and curbs to the influence of the nobility. Tonga's complex social structure is essentially broken into three tiers: the king, the nobles, and the commoners. Between the king, nobles, and commoners are matapule, sometimes called "talking chiefs," who are allied with the king or a noble, and who may also hold estates. Obligations and responsibilities among the groups are reciprocal, and although the nobility are able to extract favors from people living on their estates, they likewise must extend favors to their people. Status and rank play a powerful role in personal relationships, even within families.

Tongans are beginning to confront the problem of how to preserve their cultural identity and traditions in the wake of the increasing impact of Western technology and culture. Migration and the gradual monetization of the economy have led to the breakdown of the traditional extended family. Some of the poor, traditionally cared for by the extended family, are now being left without visible means of support. The rapidly increasing population is already too great to provide the constitutionally mandated 8.25-acre plot of land or ‘api tukuhau due each male at age 16. Population density reached 132 persons per square kilometer in 2002, fueling the growing population shift from farm and village to urban centers, where traditional societal and political structures are undergoing steady change. Increasing educational opportunities, expanded media penetration and foreign influences via the country's extensive diaspora have raised the political awareness of Tonga's commoners and stimulated dissent against the system of government. In the past 2 decades, calls for political reform have gained wide-ranging support and momentum.

Historically, political reform has been slow in the kingdom. In a departure from this, the late King of Tonga announced in late 2004 that he would henceforth include people's representatives in the 12-member appointed cabinet. Following elections in March 2005, the king appointed two of nine elected people's representatives and two nobles' representatives as cabinet ministers. In April 2005, Tonga's first official political party, the People's Democratic Party, was formed, and its candidate was one of those elected to parliament in special May by-elections held to fill the two people's representational seats vacated by the king's cabinet appointments. The by-election also resulted in the election of the first woman to sit in the Tongan parliament in 24 years. When the princely prime minister resigned from office in early 2006, the king appointed People's Representative Feleti Sevele as the first commoner prime minister in modern times.

In November 2006, days of political demonstrations deteriorated into a riot, leaving the central business district of Nuku'alofa in ruins. The government declared a state of emergency to restore law and order to the capital. The state of emergency was repeatedly extended, and was still in place in June 2010.

In recent years, the king has repeatedly expressed support for political reforms. In August 2007, a tripartite committee of cabinet, nobles', and people's representatives issued a report to the Legislative Assembly, which endorsed the committee's report "in general," prior to adjourning in October 2007. In July 2008, the Assembly passed legislation to establish a Constitutional and Electoral Reform Commission (CEC) charged with undertaking preparatory work for the 2010 political reforms. The CEC was established on January 5, 2009 and had 10 months to report to the Privy Council and parliament with recommendations on constitutional and electoral reforms for consideration. On November 5, 2009, the CEC presented its final report. Parliament endorsed approximately two-thirds of the CEC’s recommendations in December 2009. Constitutional and legislative amendments were made to facilitate the implementation of the endorsed reforms. The reforms included increasing the number of people’s representatives from nine to 17 and a new electoral system under which 17 electoral constituencies were drawn by a newly established Electoral Commission.

First elections under the current political reform process took place on November 25, 2010. The elections were observed by officials from the Australian and New Zealand governments, and were deemed to be free and fair. Of the 17 people’s representative seats, the Friendly Islands Democratic Party (FIDP) won 12. However, this was not enough to secure an outright majority and after days of political wrangling, a secret ballot produced a noble representative, Lord Siale'ataonga Tu'ivakano, as Tonga’s 15th prime minister. He is the first person to hold the job as a result of being elected by his peers and not appointed by the monarch.

Type: Constitutional hereditary monarchy.
Constitution: 1875 (revised 1970).
Independence: June 4, 1970.
Branches: Executive--monarch, prime minister, and cabinet. Legislative--unicameral Legislative Assembly. Judicial--Privy Council, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court, Land Court, Magistrates' Court.
Administrative subdivisions: Three main island groups--Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u.
Political parties: People's Democratic Party, Friendly Islands Human Rights and Democratic Movement, Paati Langafonua Tu'uloa.
Suffrage: Universal at age 21.
Central government budget (2009-2010 est.): $100.1 million.

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History of Tonga

The word Tonga means "south" in numerous Polynesian languages. Some scholars believe the inhabitants originally came from the islands now known as Samoa. Archaeological evidence indicates that the Tonga islands have been settled since at least 500 B.C., and local traditions have carefully preserved the names of the Tongan sovereign for about 1,000 years. The power of the Tongan monarchy reached its height in the 13th century. At the time, chieftains exercised political influence as far away as Samoa. During the 14th century, the King of Tonga delegated much of his temporal power to a brother while retaining the spiritual authority. Sometime later, this process was repeated by the second royal line, thus resulting in three distinct lines: the Tu'i Tonga with spiritual authority, which is believed to have extended over much of Polynesia; the Tu'i Ha'atakalaua; and the Tu'i Kanokupolu. The latter two had temporal authority for carrying out much of the day-to-day administration of the kingdom. Dutch navigators in 1616 were the first Europeans to sight the Tongan archipelago. The main island of Tongatapu was first visited by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1643. Continual contact with Europeans, however, did not begin until more than 125 years later. Captain James Cook visited the islands in 1773 and 1777 and gave the archipelago the name "the Friendly Islands" because of the gentle nature of the people he encountered. He, of course, was never aware of the acrimonious debate that raged among contending nobles over who should have the honor of attacking Cook's tiny fleet and killing its sailors. In 1789, the famous mutiny on the British ship, Bounty, took place in the waters between the Ha'apai and Nomuka island groups. Shortly after Captain Cook's last visit, warfare broke out in the islands as the three lines of kings contended for dominance. At about the same time, young Tongan nobles serving as mercenaries took Tongan culture to Fiji's most eastern island group, the Laus. The first missionaries, attached to the London Missionary Society, arrived in Tonga in 1747. A second missionary group followed in 1822, led by Walter Lawry of the Wesleyan Missionary Society. They converted Taufa'ahau, one of the claimants to the Tu'i Kanokupolu line, and Christianity began to spread throughout the islands. At the time of his conversion, Taufa'ahau took the name of Siaosi (George) and his consort assumed the name Salote (Charlotte) in honor of King George III and Queen Charlotte of England. In the following years, he united all of the Tongan islands for the first time in recorded history. In 1845, he was formally proclaimed King George Tupou I, and the present dynasty was founded. He established a constitution and a parliamentary government based, in some respects, on the British model. In 1862, he abolished the existing system of semi-serfdom and established an entirely alien system of land tenure. Under this system every male Tongan, upon reaching the age of 16, was entitled to rent--for life and at a nominal fee--a plot of bushland (called "api tukuhau") of 8.25 acres, plus a village allotment of about three-eights of an acre for his home (‘api kolo). Tonga concluded a treaty of friendship and protection with the United Kingdom in 1900 and came under British protection. It retained its independence and autonomy, while the United Kingdom agreed to handle its foreign affairs and protect it from external attack. During World War II, in close collaboration with New Zealand, Tonga formed a local defense force of about 2,000 troops that saw action in the Solomon Islands. In addition, New Zealand and U.S. troops were stationed on Tongatapu, which became a staging point for shipping. A new treaty of friendship and protection with the United Kingdom, signed in 1958 and ratified in May 1959, provided for a British Commissioner and consul in Tonga who were responsible to the Governor of Fiji in his capacity as British Chief Commissioner for Tonga. In mid-1965 the British Commissioner and consul became directly responsible to the U.K. Secretary of State for Colonial Affairs. Tonga became fully independent on June 4, 1970, an event officially designated by the King as Tonga's "reentry into the community of nations." King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV died in September 2006 and was succeeded by King Siaosi Tupou V.

People of Tonga

Tongans, a Polynesian group with a very small mixture of Melanesian, represent more than 98% of the inhabitants. The rest are European, mixed European, and other Pacific Islanders. There are also about a thousand Chinese immigrants. More than two-thirds of the population of the Kingdom of Tonga live on its main island, Tongatapu. An increasing number of Tongans have moved into Nuku'alofa, Tonga's capital and only urban and commercial center, where increasingly Western and indigenous Polynesian cultural and living patterns have blended. For instance, the extended family lifestyle is declining, with young couples choosing to live on their own. Nonetheless, village life and kinship ties continue to be important throughout the country. The Christian faith that has dominated Tongan life for almost 2 centuries is still influential. All commerce and entertainment activities cease on Sunday from midnight, and the constitution declares the Sabbath to be sacred, forever. Attempts to amend the Sunday law in recent years have been unsuccessful. Primary education between ages 6 and 14 is compulsory and free in state schools. The state owns and operates 99% of the primary schools and 44% of secondary schools. Higher education includes teacher training, nursing and medical training, a small private university, a women's business college, and a number of private agricultural schools. Most higher education is pursued overseas. Nationality: Noun and adjective --Tongan(s). Population (2010 est.): 103,365. Age structure (2010 est.): 38% below 15; 8% over 60. Annual population growth rate (2010): 0.3%. Ethnic groups: Tongan 98%, other Polynesian, European. Religions: Christian. Languages: Tongan, English. Education: Literacy (2007)--99.2%. Health: Infant mortality rate (2008)--19/1,000. Life expectancy at birth (2004-2005)--70.2 years (female 73 years; male 67.3 years). Work force (2006): 35,670. Agriculture --65%. Unemployment (2006): 1.1%.