Guangdong Province donates fishing boats and tractors to Tongan Ministry of Fisheries

According to a press release by the Tongan Ministry of Fisheries (MoF), on October 8th, 2020 China's Ambassador to Tonga, Cao Xiaolin, oversaw the handover of eight fishing boats and nine tractors to the Tongan Ministry of Fisheries and the Tongan Ministry of Agriculture in Maúfanga.

The boats were donated by the Ocean and Fishery Bureau of Dongguan Municipal People’s Government, and are to assist in the Tongan Ministry of Fisheries in the ministry's work in the fishery sector. According to the Tonga Broadcasting Commission, the Tongan government made the request for fishing boats in 2018.

The government of Dongguan city then provided TP$643,924.99 for the manufacturing of the eight fishing boats and outboard engines in Tonga.

The fishing boats will be divided among the outer islands of Tonga, with four to go to Ha'apai to fulfill the sister city relationship between Dongguan and Ha’apai.

According to the MoF press release, the tractors were provided by the Beijing Machinery Repair Company Limited of China.

According to the Chinese embassy, Guangdong province was the main entity behind both the fishing boats and the tractors, meaning the tractors were likely also donated by Dongguang.

A later press release from the Tongan Ministry of Agriculture states the tractors were donated by the Chinese government.

The Tongan CEO of Agriculture, Dr Viliami Manu, says the tractors will be rentable by the Tongan public for $80 pa’anga per hour.

These donations are not the first time that China has donated agricultural equipment to Tonga, and China's Ambassador to Tonga remarked at the handover ceremony that previous donations have improved agricultural productivity.