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Tonga

Facts and stats about Tonga

jaacosta47

Author: jaacosta47

The Kingdom of Tonga is a sovereign state in Polynesia composed of 170 islands and inhabited by more than 103,000 people. It was named the “Friendly Islands” because of the warm reception it gave to Captain James Cook during his first visit to the region in 1773. Tonga was never under any foreign government. Tonga was a British protectorate until it became independent in 1970. In 2010, the country took an important step towards attaining a fully functional constitutional monarchy. It undertook legislative reforms paving the way for the first representative elections and a popularly voted parliament. This ended 165 years of feudal regime.

Tonga relies on government capital projects and more stringent control of its national budget for 2014 to reinforce economic growth this financial year. Decreasing remittances, low export performance and excessive public debt have troubled the island kingdom recently causing difficult economic conditions. Last year, the National Reserve Bank of Tonga declared a continuation of an accommodative monetary policy position to encourage investment. However, this has not been enough to translate to visible enhancement of the private sector.

At the present time, a lot depends on government investments while basic indicators show the need for stronger measures. Consumer prices increased from 2012 to 2013 by 1.1 per cent. This was the result of increases in imported food prices. Growth is projected to become stronger this year. The projection is traced to the implementation of the new budget policy; more construction activities and commencement of new public works; more ventures in agriculture, tourism and trade sectors; and, developments in the fisheries industry.

106,322

Population. Ranked 190th in 2013.

$4,493.87

GDP per capita. Ranked 93th in 2012.

Largest city Nuku'alofa - 34,000
Capital city Nuku'alofa - 34,000
Major language Tongan, English
Major religion Christianity
Monetary unit pa'anga
Head of state King George Tupou VI
Prime minister Lord Tu'ivakano
Alternative names Kingdom of Tonga, Tonga
Groups Group object, Group object, Group object, Group object, Group object

Interesting observations about Tonga

  • Tonga has ranked last for labor force, total since 1990.
  • Tonga has ranked last for force > total since 1983.
  • Tonga has ranked last for labor force > total since 1985.
  • Tonga ranked first for drinking water source > improved > urban amongst Hot countries in 2013.
  • Tonga ranked first for total population > age 15-19 per 1000 amongst Christian countries in 2005.
  • Tonga ranked third for total fertility rate amongst East Asia and Pacific in 2013.
  • Tonga has ranked last for debt > external debt stocks since 1999.
  • Tonga has ranked last for external debt > debt outstanding > external debt stocks > total > DOD > current US$ since 2000.
  • Tonga ranked 68 places from the bottom for population globally in 2013.

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The Kingdom of Tonga is a sovereign state in Polynesia composed of 170 islands and inhabited by more than 103,000 people. It was named the “Friendly Islands” because of the warm reception it gave to Captain James Cook during his first visit to the region in 1773. Tonga was never under any foreign government. Tonga was a British protectorate until it became independent in 1970. In 2010, the country took an important step towards attaining a fully functional constitutional monarchy. It undertook legislative reforms paving the way for the first representative elections and a popularly voted parliament. This ended 165 years of feudal regime.

Tonga relies on government capital projects and more stringent control of its national budget for 2014 to reinforce economic growth this financial year. Decreasing remittances, low export performance and excessive public debt have troubled the island kingdom recently causing difficult economic conditions. Last year, the National Reserve Bank of Tonga declared a continuation of an accommodative monetary policy position to encourage investment. However, this has not been enough to translate to visible enhancement of the private sector.

At the present time, a lot depends on government investments while basic indicators show the need for stronger measures. Consumer prices increased from 2012 to 2013 by 1.1 per cent. This was the result of increases in imported food prices. Growth is projected to become stronger this year. The projection is traced to the implementation of the new budget policy; more construction activities and commencement of new public works; more ventures in agriculture, tourism and trade sectors; and, developments in the fisheries industry.

Posted on 11 Apr 2014

jaacosta47

jaacosta47

423 Stat enthusiast

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