Tonga is one of the world’s most exposed countries to climate change and natural disasters. It suffered the highest loss from natural disasters in the world (as a ratio to GDP) in 2018 and is among the top five over the last decade (Table 1). Climate change will make this worse. Cyclones will become more intense, with more damage from wind and sea surges. Rising sea levels will cause more flooding, coastal erosion and contaminate fresh water. Daily high temperatures will become more extreme, with more severe floods and drought.

Forecasts suggest that solid growth in Asia is likely to continue. By 2030, Asian economies are expected to be roughly four times larger than they are today, and Asia’s share of global output is expected to rise to 40% of the global total. In contrast, most countries in the Pacific have experienced extended periods of relatively low growth, and many have suffered significant setbacks from disasters. This book analyzes and discerns some of the main trends driving economic relations between Asia and the Pacific. It aims to assess how the 14 Pacific developing member countries of the Asian Development Bank can better tap into opportunities arising from Asian growth, and explores how the economic and financial integration between Asia and the Pacific can be expanded to benefit both regions. Pacific Opportunities identifies critical constraints on integration and sets out policy reforms to address these constraints to mutually beneficial economic ties between the two regions. These two very different regions have drawn closer economically over the past two decades as improvements in transport infrastructure and advances in information and communications technology have helped to bridge geographic distance.