The Prime Minister, Honourable Hu’akavameiliku, launched ‘Tonga’s Labour Mobility Supply Management Strategy’ at the Ancient Tonga in Fangaloto yesterday, 13 April, 2023.
“Labour mobility presents a viable development opportunity for Tonga. It provides employment opportunities for workers, thus reducing local unemployment and underemployment, and remittances received from workers directly contributes to poverty alleviation and improved standards of living,” he said.
He said evidence has shown that a sizable volume of remittances and skills acquired from labour mobility can have macroeconomic growth impacts in the country.
For Tonga, the resilience of overseas remittances was evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, helping to support domestic demand and contribute to socio-economic development. Tonga’s Labour Mobility Policy was launched in 2020 and today saw the launching of implementation of one of the five pillars in that Policy – the supply management strategy.
The Hon Prime Minister said it was pleasing to see the alignment these works have on Government’s priority areas. “The findings presented to us today, highlights the need for the Strategy. Strategically, that will help to develop a well-managed, coordinated labour mobility supply management program that provides low-skilled and semi-skilled workers with increased circular [and temporary] migration opportunities for decent work overseas, while enhancing the positive social and economic development of labour mobility in Tonga.”
“As the program expands from low skill to semi-skill, it is timely that Tonga has this Labour Mobility Supply Management Strategy, to guide our continued partnerships to develop needed skills for your markets as well as ours, and to further collaborate on reintegration programs that transforms those skills to meet Tonga’s development goals and objectives. That would be a win-win- achievement for all our countries,” he added as he thanked the two governments of New Zealand and Australia.