New settlement support project helps Tongans prepare for life in New Zealand

Via RNZ

A representative of a non-government organisation working to assist Tongans prepare for settlement in New Zealand under the Pacific Access Category resident visa programme believes the project will be a game-changer for Pacific Islanders if they make use of it.

Cassandra Vaea said the work done by the Pacific Settlement Support Services (PSSS), in partnership with SIAOLA - a National Pacific Social Service Provider based in Auckland and Gisborne under the umbrella of the Methodist Church of New Zealand and the Methodist Alliance of Social Service Providers - is critical for Tongans and other Islanders, especially in Samoa, in ensuring that their transition when migrating to Aotearoa is made easier.

The PSSS was established in 2019 by Laura Keill-Hall, Mandy Siitia and Zeprina Fale, Samoans living in New Zealand who wanted to help fellow Samoans.

That help has now extended to Tonga through the partnership with SIAOLA, signed between PSSS chief executive Mandy Siitia and Kathleen Tuai Ta'ufo'ou, the SIAOLA chief executive earlier this year.

Vaea said they currently target the Pacific Access Category (PAC), as these are people who have been given the green light to move and reside in New Zealand.

But they also assist anyone who requires their help.

Her Majesty Queen Nanasipau'u of Tonga is also part of the project, through her charitable trust in Nuku'alofa.

Vaea said the need to assist Tongans is born out of the fact that there have been numerous cases of Islanders who are challenged when they move to New Zealand, with some are forced to live in unhealthy environments because they cannot afford to work and pay for decent accommodation and life.

"So we are coming in to assist at home in Tonga by providing them with advice and information that they can use before they make the move," she said.

"We try to make sure that they are prepared mentally and physically for the move before they do come across.

"We assist them in the basics needs when they come over so that they can have a smoother transition into adapting into the new life they have been offered."

She said the initiative represents a new approach to Pacific migration, where rather than preparing migrants only after they arrive, the project equips individuals and families before they leave their homeland-reducing settlement challenges, strengthening resilience, and creating pathways for long-term success.

"Through collaboration with community, church, and royal partners, the programme empowers participants to confidently navigate life in New Zealand while remaining deeply connected to their Tongan heritage, language, culture, and faith," Miss Vaea said.

"By investing in preparation before departure, we are helping reshape the migration experience from one of uncertainty to one of opportunity, confidence, and generational prosperity.

She believes migration should never begin at the airport.

"It should begin with preparation, knowledge, and confidence," she said.

"Through this initiative, we are ensuring that Tongan families leave their homeland equipped to succeed while remaining deeply connected to their culture, faith, and identity. This is about building stronger futures, stronger communities, and a stronger Pacific for generations to come."

Challenges

Records have shown that Tongans who move to live in New Zealand are challenged by housing affordability and overcrowding, lower median incomes tied to blue-collar work, and navigating cultural differences between traditional Tongan collective life and Western societal structures.

Tongans, like other Pacific Island families, favour large, extended-family households, which provides a big challenge as majority of standard New Zealand housing is often built for nuclear families.

The continuing hikes in rentals presents another big challenge as newcomers have to work up to a certain period to be able to afford purchasing their own homes, and this leaves families vulnerable to rising private rental costs, especially if family members work in lower median annual earnings compared to the national average.

PSSS team Siitia, Sililoa Tuai and Vaea visited Tonga this month for the first time and met with locals who were successful PAC visa holders and others who were planning to make the move to New Zealand.

Vaea said four meetings on the main island of Tongatapu has set the tone for work that will need to be done, once the new arrivals make it to New Zealand.

"So the PSSS is a charitable trust established to support Pacific migrants as they transition into the life in New Zealand, and it is to provide practical, hands-on support, settlement planning, and needs assessment, which was what we were able to do for the first time in Tonga," she said.

"We approached Her Majesty Queen Nanasipau'u's Charitable Trust in Tonga, and we worked together in hosting workshops in the three villages of Kolovai, Malapo and Nukunuku before an open workshop and meeting where we also invited everyone who needed assistance.

"We expect the first lot of PAC visa holders to come through within the next seven months and once they arrive here we will assist them to settle in and work with them for 12 months."