March 25, 2021, Nuku’alofa—Chief Executive Officer Mr. Paula Ma’u officially opened a half-day workshop held by the Department of Climate Change under the Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Communications (MEIDECC) for professionals and journalists from different media organizations in Tonga.
In its first awareness-raising event held for the Tongan media, the Department of Climate focused on engaging the media as stakeholders in Tonga’s Joint National Action Plan II on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management
Mr. Ma’u warmly welcomed the participants and thanked them for availing their time to attend the workshop. He opened by outlining Tonga’s current status: “Tonga is extremely vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change and disaster risks. It was ranked as the world’s second most ‘at risk’ country to all disasters, as stated in the World Risk Report 2016.”
“Climate change poses a serious threat to Tonga—the environment, the land and the ocean for livelihoods and existence of the people of Tonga,” he continued. “Therefore, the Information and Communication Division under the Department of Climate Change organized an insight workshop to show how the Government of Tonga has been addressing the impacts of climate change through the Joint National Action Plan II.”
Mr. Ma’u emphasized the importance of engaging the media as a key partner to assist the Department of Climate Change in raising awareness and informing the general public about climate change.
The workshop was followed by a presentation by the Director, Ms. Luʻisa Tuʻiʻāfitu-Malolo, and her senior staff to enlighten the journalists about the department’s work.
This workshop took place with funding from the NDC Partnership Climate Action Enhancement Package (CAEP) implemented by the NAP Global Network Secretariat, the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), in collaboration with the Department of Climate Change.
Read more about the Joint National Action Plan 2 on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management 2018 – 2028.
Note: Tonga is among the last countries in the world that remain COVID-19-free.
