01st September His Majesty King Tupou VI officially opened the St. George Government Building at Pangai Si’i in Nuku’alofa, this morning.
The Project was first proposed and named by his late Majesty, King Tupou V. Located at the Centre of Nuku’alofa opposite Pangai Lahi, the landmark was a $25milion Pa’anga constructions grant by the People’s Republic of China.
In the Welcoming remarks, Prime Minister of Tonga Hon. Samuela ‘Akilisi Pohiva expressed his gratitude on behalf of their Majesties and the Government of Tonga to the Government of China for their unconditional assistance.
“I’m deeply honored on behalf of their Majesties, King Tupou VI, Queen Nanasipau’u and the People of Tonga to convey our utmost gratitude and humble appreciation to the Government of the People’s Republic of China for your unconditional assistance.”
Hon. Pohiva stated that the Project’s Objective is to construct an Office Building to accommodate the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Finance and National Planning and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“The significance of the building is that it accommodates the Cabinet’s Chambers which has been fully equipped.”
He said that the building design theme was to become a landmark, a monument and a national icon for Tonga.
Ambassador of China to Tonga His Excellency, Mr. Wang Baodong thanked their Majesties and the Government of Tonga on their joint efforts that brought to pass the completion of the construction.
“The construction of the St. George Government building has shown great supports and promotions of the Tonga Royal Family to the Tongan Government, and thanks to our joint efforts we are here witnessing the new birth landmark in Tongatapu, and a new achievement for the China-Tonga Cooperation.”
He said that Tonga and China first established their diplomatic relations in November 1998, and since then, His Majesty, China and Tonga have enjoyed increased number of exchanges, cooperations in different areas and producing fruitful results for the two countries.
The agreement of the construction started in March, 2012 where the People’s Republic of China and the Kingdom of Tonga officially signed a letter that confirmed the agreement on the construction of the landmark. In November, 2014 the Government of Tonga and Shanghai Construction Group Company Ltd signed the agreement to carry out the construction work.
The construction was completed in May, 2017, and in June of this year the building was handed over by the People’s Republic of China to the Government of Tonga.
Present at the occasion, were Nobles of the Realms, Ministers of the Crown, Senior Government Officials, Diplomatic Corps and Guests.
Ends
Issued by: Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Communication.