Tongan trade mission

Press, 27 October 1977, Page 20

Tongan trade mission

What the Tongan trade mission at present in New Zealand wants from this country is by no means clear. Tonga certainly buys more from New Zealand —S6.IM in the year ended in June of 1977—than it sells to New Zealand — SI.7M in the same period. But it is difficult to know what to do about that New Zealand is not actively discriminating against Tongan exports. Where items are affected by New Zealand’s import licensing scheme, Tonga would be eligible for special dispensation. The specific complaint made by the leader of the mission, Baron Vaea, was about the price of bananas, and when questioned about the quality, he brushed the question aside, saying that one should not complain about quality if one was not paying a satisfactory price. The answer is hardly enough. New Zealand purchases of bananas from Tonga during the year ended in June totalled SI.IM c.i.f. Other products for which the c.i.f. price exceeded $lOO,OOO were desiccated coconut, coconuts, fresh fruit, root vegetables, and sisal. New Zealand sold beer, cigarettes, manufactured tobacco, Pinus radiata, paints, hardboard, and sheets of iron, all exceeding $lOO,OOO in value. Like New Zealand, Tonga has suffered because the prices of its principal exports have not risen at the same rate as the prices of its imports. One response to this problem is to produce more and Tonga has by no means reached the limit of its capacity to produce. Land which is not being used to the full cannot give rise to much sympathy even from those who wish a Pacific neighbour well

The extension of the Pacific Islands Industrial Development Scheme, announced yesterday by the Minister of Trade and Industry (Mr AdamsSchneider) may go some distance towards helping Tonga and other Pacific island States to develop. Basically the scheme consists of interest-free loans to approved companies in the islands, the aim being to encourage New Zealand companies to develop the islands. Some products would have access to the New Zealand market. New Zealand has also offered the use of its Trade Commissioner Service throughout the world to Tonga. In bilateral aid New Zealand has set aside SI.7M for Tonga this year. None of this is to deny that Tonga does have serious and even worsening problems. The estimate of 15 per cent to 25 per cent of the work-force being unemployed is moving in itself. The flirtation with the Soviet Union last year and the present negotiations with a Japanese company’ over fishing and mineral exploration are symptomatic of the kingdom’s economy. Yet it is difficult to know how much more this country can do without specific proposals from Tonga itself. The King is an absolute monarch, making the society one of the less flexible with which this country has to deal. Several of King Taufa’ahau Tupou’s pet projects have had no encouragement from New Zealand because this country’s politicians and official advisers have had doubts whether the projects would benefit the bulk of Tonga’s population. The present trade mission from the kingdom might usefully spend some time in Wellington finding out the sort of aid projects New Zealand has supported in other Pacific countries.