Chinese Government provides RMB 82.4 million grant — via ETCA — for the construction of Saint George's Palace Construction Project

Project narrative

On April 19, 2012, the Chinese Government and the Government of Tonga signed letters of exchange, which committed grant funding for the Saint George's Palace Construction Project. The grant proceeds were drawn from at least one Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) signed by the two governments. In total, China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) reportedly committed RMB 82,430,000 of grant funding for this project. The purpose of this project was to construct St George Palace — a four-story office block in Pangai Si’i within the Nuku’alofa Central Business District — and equip it with furniture and kitchen appliances. The office block — with a floor area of 5745m² — is responsible for housing the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Finance and Planning, and the Office of Trade and Foreign Affairs. The building has a red turret, similar to the 19th Century colonial architecture of the Royal Palace. Shanghai Construction Group was the contractor responsible for implementation. Construction was originally set to begin in July 2014 and last for 20 months. However, the project was delayed due to a slow project design process. A formal groundbreaking ceremony took place on August 25, 2015. However, construction did not commence until November 18, 2015. Most of the workers responsible for construction were Chinese rather than Tongan. Construction ended on May 17, 2017 and the project was officially completed and handed over to the local authorities on June 22, 2017. Tonga’s Deputy Prime Minister Hon Siaosi Sovaleni and the Chinese Ambassador to Tonga HE Mr. Wang Baodong signed the handover certificate. The St. George Government Building was officially opened and put into use on September 1, 2007.