30 April 2024

On April 24th, 2024, the Acting Prime Minister of Tonga, Hon. Samiu Kuita Vaipulu, held a bilateral meeting with the delegation from the Mission of the UN Foundation Congressional Learning Trip to the Pacific at the Fa’onelua Convention Centre.

Led by Congressman Mr Ami Bera, the delegation discussed collaboration on mutual interests, including climate change and oceans, Tonga’s upcoming hosting of the 53rd Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting next August, the fourth Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) conference in Antigua and Barbuda next month, and the bilateral diplomatic relations between Tonga and the US.

The UN Foundation is a public charity that connects the UN’s work with policymakers, businesses, and NGOs worldwide, to tackle global challenges. The Foundation’s core mission is to organize privately funded learning trips that allow the US members of Congress and their staff to see the UN’s work in person and ask questions about a wide range of policy initiatives. The delegation’s mission to the Pacific aims to explore how the UN is helping Small Island Development States navigate emerging challenges, particularly climate change’s impact on nutrition and health.

During their one-day trip to Tonga, over 30 delegations visited different locations, including the newly established US Embassy Office in Nuku’alofa, the Displaced Community of ‘Atata Si’i, Tonga Side School, MORDI Tonga Office, Vaiola Hospital, and the Legislative Assembly of Tonga.