Tonga will launch its first National Ocean Policy this year, Prime Minister Lord Fatafehi Fakafanua announced at the Melanesian Ocean Summit.

He said the policy will put into action the Ocean Management Act of 2025, which he called “a landmark achievement in our national history.”

The new policy sets a ten‑year vision with targets of 30 percent protection and 100 percent sustainable management of Tonga’s waters.

Fakafanua explained that Tonga’s approach is to value ecosystems while they are alive and thriving.

“Tonga will value nature’s contribution while it’s living, while it’s thriving,” he told delegates.

He highlighted whales as central to this vision, noting: “Tonga estimates the value of one living whale is at US$2 million, and they are the great fertilisers of our oceans.”

He pledged support for a whale corridor and said Tonga is favourable to granting whales legal personhood.

Fakafanua stressed that regional cooperation is essential, as ocean currents, migratory species, and tuna stocks connect Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.

“Our ocean connects us, it doesn’t divide us. Together we can secure a resilient, sustainable and prosperous blue Pacific for the generations to come,” he said.

Source: Pacnews