ADB $10m grant aimed at protecting families and strengthening Tonga’s finances
ADB $10m grant to support families and tighten Tonga’s finances
Nukuʻalofa — A US$10 million grant from the Asian Development Bank is expected to help Tonga strengthen its finances, improve disaster preparedness, and better protect families who are most at risk of falling into poverty.
The funding is part of the Asian Development Bank’s Improving Economic Management Program and is designed to help the government manage public money more carefully while ensuring support reaches people faster when disasters strike.
Former prime minister Dr Aisake Eke said the grant should be seen as part of a long-standing partnership between Tonga and the ADB rather than a new or isolated initiative.
“This has been part of the broad ADB assistance programs with Tonga which started in 2014 under the Tuʻivakanō Government,” he said. “There has been an annual review of the government’s performance on public financial management policies which involve various public finance and other institutional reform measures. A part of this ADB assistance program is the provision of annual budget support.”
It was Eke’s government that completed the required policy reforms under the ADB program, leading to the release of the funding.
Tonga remains highly exposed to cyclones, climate change, and major shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2022 Hunga Tonga–Hunga Haʻapai eruption. While extreme poverty is rare, official figures show that around one in five Tongans live below the national poverty line, with hardship more common in rural areas and the outer islands.
Many families live close to the poverty line and can be pushed into hardship by a single cyclone, illness, or rise in living costs. Development partners say this makes prevention just as important as emergency response.
The ADB grant supports reforms aimed at improving how government money is planned, spent, and reported. This includes clearer debt reporting, better long-term budgeting, and measures to ensure public funds are used more efficiently. The goal is to protect essential services such as health, education, and disaster response, especially during difficult economic periods.
A major focus of the program is improving support for vulnerable households. The grant supports the creation of a national database to better identify families in need, along with systems that allow assistance to be delivered more quickly during emergencies. It also supports the use of mobile phone alerts to warn people about approaching disasters.
ADB assessments indicate that these reforms could significantly increase the number of vulnerable households covered by social protection programs, helping families recover faster and avoid falling deeper into poverty.
The funding is being provided as a grant, not a loan, meaning it does not add to Tonga’s debt. This is seen as particularly important for a country that often has to borrow after disasters to rebuild infrastructure and restore services.
The program reflects a long-term approach that links financial support to government performance, with regular reviews to ensure agreed reforms are being carried out.
For ordinary Tongans, the real impact of the $10 million grant will be measured by whether help arrives faster after disasters, essential services remain stable, and fewer families are pushed into hardship when the next crisis hits.
