Tonga’s Third Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).

Tonga’s Third Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0), submitted in September 2025, builds on and enhances the ambition of its previous NDC (2020) by broadening sectoral coverage, strengthening adaptation priorities, and reinforcing implementation frameworks. While the earlier NDC focused primarily on energy, forestry, and waste with conditional emissions reductions and resilience targets, the third NDC expands to additional sectors such as transport, industrial processes, and product use, and introduces new thematic areas, including loss and damage. It also reflects progress achieved under the second NDC—such as over 60% of targeted energy emissions reductions and large-scale reforestation—while acknowledging gaps in transport, energy efficiency, and coastal protection. The key objectives of NDC 3.0 are to increase mitigation ambition by advancing toward 70% renewable electricity by 2030 and 100% by 2035, enhance climate resilience across critical sectors, and align national development with long-term low-emission and climate-resilient pathways.
To achieve these objectives, Tonga’s NDC 3.0 outlines a range of integrated actions across mitigation and adaptation. These include accelerating renewable energy deployment and improving energy efficiency, particularly in transport through electrification and low-carbon shipping, as well as expanding climate-smart agriculture and forestry initiatives such as large-scale tree planting. It also prioritizes strengthening coastal protection measures, enhancing sustainable fisheries and marine resource management, improving water security systems, and building resilient infrastructure including schools and community facilities. In addition, the NDC emphasizes disaster risk management, ecosystem-based approaches, and stronger governance, data systems, and financing mechanisms to support implementation. Together, these actions aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, safeguard livelihoods, and enhance Tonga’s capacity to withstand and adapt to climate change impacts.