Overview

Cook Islands comprises 15 small islands, spread over 2.2 million square kilometres, between American Samoa and French Polynesia, South of Hawaii. Avrarua, on the island of Rarotonga, is the national capital. The islands are home to a population of approximately 17,500 people. There are at least four times as many Cook Islanders living in New Zealand and Australia.

Political overview

Cook Islands is self-governing in ‘free association' with New Zealand, an arrangement dating from August 1965. Under the terms of the free association, most Cook Islanders hold New Zealand citizenship and enjoy the right of free access to New Zealand and by extension Australia.

System of Government

Cook Islands is a sovereign parliamentary democracy, with King Charles III the Head of State, represented by a King's Representative, currently HE Sir Tom Marsters KBE.

Cook Islands has a unicameral parliament with 25 elected members and a parliamentary term of four years. There is also a 15-member House of Ariki (Chiefs), established in 1966, composed of six Ariki from Rarotonga and nine from the outer islands. The Ariki advise the Government on land use and customary issues. There is full adult suffrage and registration is compulsory, although voting is not.

The Head of Government is the Prime Minister, currently Mark Brown. Prime Minister Brown was re-appointed as the 12th Prime Minister of Cook Islands on 11 August 2022 (CKT) following the 2022 election.

Bilateral relations

Australia's High Commission to Cook Islands commenced operations on 17 December 2019. The first resident High Commissioner, Dr Christopher Watkins, arrived in March 2020.

Australia's relationship with Cook Islands focusses on shared membership of regional organisations, trade and investment, people-to-people links, and security cooperation. Cook Islands was a founding member of the Pacific Islands Forum and served as Chair in 2012 and 2023.

People-to-people links

The latest census (2021) records that a diaspora of at least 28,000 Cook Islanders living in Australia, many with Australian citizenship. A far greater number have studied in Australian universities. In 2023, 23,726 Australians visited Cook Islands.

Since 2014, the New Colombo Plan has awarded 7 scholarships and 297 mobility grants for Australian undergraduates to undertake study and work-based experiences in the Cook Islands in the areas of climate change, teaching, music, public sector management, law and nursing. The New Colombo Plan is an Australian Government initiative that aims to lift knowledge of the Indo-Pacific in Australia by supporting Australian undergraduates to study and undertake internships in the region.

Security cooperation

Cook Islands participates in the Pacific Maritime Security Program. In June 2022, Australia delivered a Guardian-class Patrol Boat, Te Kukupa (Dove of Peace) II, to Cook Islands. This vessel replaced the Pacific Patrol Boat, Te Kukupa, that Australia delivered in 1989 and refurbished twice, most recently in 2015. These Australian-made patrol boats assist Cook Islands Police Maritime Division with surveillance in Cook Islands' large Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Through the Pacific Maritime Security Program, Australia provides ongoing maintenance and sustainment for patrol boats, in-country and Australia-based training in technical and professional skills for crews, funding support for regional exercises, operational planning support, and funding for aerial surveillance through the Forum Fisheries Agency. As well as maritime surveillance, patrol boats also provide a search and rescue capability.

Economic overview

On 1 January 2020, Cook Islands graduated from the OECD Development Assistance Committee List of Official Development Assistance (ODA) recipients. As a high-income status country, Cook Islands became ineligible to receive ODA. The COVID-19 pandemic has since caused a significant contraction in Cook Islands’ tourism-based economy. Economic diversification is a priority for Cook Islands, including developing marine resources within its large EEZ.

Capacity building

Australia allocated $8million over four years (2020-21 to 2023-24) in non-ODA funding to provide continued, targeted assistance for Cook Islands’ participation in Australian-led regional initiatives and to support the pursuit of economic diversification.

Through a targeted non-ODA grants program, Australia is supporting priority sectors in Cook Islands, including initiatives to advance private sector development, improved agricultural market access and export growth.

More information on Cook Islands economy [PDF] and Australia’s Partnership with Cook Islands.

Find information here on Australia's efforts towards building a stronger and more united Pacific family.

Trade and investment

Australia has a modest trade and investment relationship with Cook Islands. Our two-way goods and services trade was valued at approximately AUD104 million in 2023. Australia’s key exports were recreational travel, boats and floating structures and alcoholic beverages; and the key import was crustaceans as well as recreational and business travels.

Cook Islands ratified PACER Plus on 14 October 2020, becoming the eighth country to have ratified the agreement (Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, Kiribati, Tonga, Solomon Islands, Niue and Cook Islands). Cook Islands was the final ratification required to trigger the entry into force of PACER Plus, which occurred on 13 December 2020.

PACER Plus is supporting Parties to become more active partners in, and beneficiaries of, regional and global trade, for example through developing common protocols and guidelines to facilitate trade. As a trade and development agreement, PACER Plus includes a regional framework for trade related assistance. The framework brings with it Australian and New Zealand support to improve long term trade practices in the Pacific.

High-level visits and meetings

• Nov 2023: Prime Minister the Hon Anthony Albanese and Minister for International Development and the Pacific the Hon Pat Conroy visited Cook Islands to attend the 52nd Pacific Islands Forum Leaders’ Meeting.
•  June 2023: Their Excellencies General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd) and Mrs Linda Hurley travelled to Cook Islands and met with His Excellency Sir Tom Marsters KBE, King’s Representative to the Cook Islands.
• Oct 2022: Foreign Minister Penny Wong visited Cook Islands to further strengthen Australia’s deep ties via the signing of the ‘Oa Tumanava partnership. She met with the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Hon Mark Brown.
• June 2022: Prime Minister Mark Brown visited Australia to receive Cook Islands new Guardian-class Patrol Boat. He met with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Foreign Minister Penny Wong, Minister for Defence Industry and International Development and the Pacific Pat Conroy, Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Matt Keogh and Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen.
• November 2019: then-Prime Minister Henry Puna visited Australia as a Guest of the Australian Government, further strengthening the bilateral relationship. During the visit, then-Prime Minister Puna met then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison, then-Foreign Minister Marise Payne, then-Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, and then-Assistant Defence Minister and Minister for International Development and the Pacific Alex Hawke.
• November 2019: Cook Islands' then-Deputy Prime Minister Mark Brown attended the ‘No Money for Terror Ministerial Conference on Counter-Terrorism Financing' in Melbourne, Australia, hosted by Australia's then-Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton.
• July 2019: Visit to Cook Islands by then-Foreign Minister Marise Payne.