Delivering high quality, climate resilient, job creating infrastructure in Tonga

The Australian Government will provide AUD $31.25 million to support critical upgrades to Nuku’alofa Port in the Kingdom of Tonga. The AUD $138.3 million project will be financed by the Asian Development Bank and co-funded by the Government of the Kingdom of Tonga and Australia, with construction already underway.

Nuku’alofa Port is vital to Tonga’s economic recovery and growth, with around 98% of Tonga’s imports arriving by sea. This project will rehabilitate, restore, and upgrade the port, designed to ensure it will be resilient to the ongoing impacts of climate change.

Australia’s grant is helping the project to deliver on Tonga’s priorities, including high-quality, climate-resilient construction and creating local jobs.

The project will provide more than 80 local jobs, as well as training for locals, which will boost the Tongan economy. Around three-quarters of workers currently on-site are Tongan. Tongan women engineers are working in key roles and two local female university graduates have been trained to run the site laboratory. The project is being built by New Zealand company McConnell Dowell and is due to be completed by mid-2025.

Australia is committed to working in partnership with Tonga to support its ongoing economic recovery after the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcanic eruption and tsunami in January 2022.

Australia’s support is being delivered through the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific (AIFFP) which is working closely with partners in the region to deliver high-quality, resilient infrastructure in the Pacific, which creates local jobs and supports long-term economic growth.