Pickleball Cook Islands launches membership drive with big growth plans

Pickleball Cook Islands enthusiasts, the Power Puff pickles team of Tiare Kora (left) and Manine Lynch celebrate the Trader Jacks tournament. MELINA ETCHES/25052601 Pickleball Cook Islands (PCI) has officially launched its 2025 membership drive,...

Cook Islands concludes participation in first BBNJ Preparatory Commission

The Cook Islands delegation, comprised senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration (MFAI), National Environment Services (NES), and the Ministry of Marine Resources (MMR). MFAI/25050710 The Cook Islands has concluded its...

‘Wearing my flag on my heart’: Cook Islander championing climate action in Samoa

Cook Islander Ewan Cameron at SPREP headquarters in Apia, Samoa. TALAIA MIKA/25060631 For Cook Islander Ewan Cameron, living and working abroad doesn’t mean losing touch with home – in fact, it’s the opposite. Based in Apia, Samoa, with his...

Cook Islands asks for ADF14 allocation to be disbursed within four…

By Makereta Komai, PACNEWS Editor in Milan, Italy Cook Islands has encouraged the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to support its development aspirations – recognising its vulnerabilities and strengths, adopting a differentiated approach. And, Prime...

Cook Islands under coastal inundation watch - Emergency office says 'nothing major'

There could be higher-than-usual lagoon levels, wave run-up on beaches, and potential for debris to wash onto coastal areas. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Tiana Haxton A coastal inundation watch is in place for the southern Cook Islands, but Emergency...

Cook Islands environment group calls on govt to condemn Trump’s seabed mining order

By Losirene Lacanivalu, of the Cook Islands News A leading Cook Islands environmental lobby group is hoping that the Cook Islands government will speak out against the recent executive order from US President Donald Trump aimed at fast-tracking...

Forecasting hope: Climate action for a more resilient Cook Islands

Amidst the Pacific Ocean lies 15 pristine atolls and islands scattered across approximately two million square kilometres of the sea. GCF/25060501 Cook Islanders have a close connection to their land and feel a sense of stewardship to protect it...

Cook Islands calls for ban on harmful chemicals in plastics to protect Pacific

Director of the Cook Islands National Environment Service (NES), Halatoa Fua. SPREP/25043018 The Cook Islands emphasised the need to address chemicals of concern found in plastics, which disproportionately impacts human health and the environment...

Cook Islands expands international footprint 

In recent weeks, the Government has advanced a series of key bilateral and regional initiatives aimed at enhancing connectivity, boosting trade and labour mobility, and deepening collaboration on climate resilience, development, and regional...

National Council of Women urges recognition of climate change’s human and cultural costs

The Cook Islands National Council of Women (CINCW) has joined Pacific governments, youth leaders, civil society, academia, NGOs and the media at the Pacific Regional Loss and Damage Dialogue 2025, urging greater recognition of the human and...

Ramifications of the China-Cook Islands’ Partnership

Under the terms of the free association arrangement in 1965, New Zealand and the Cook Islands are expected to consult each other on external affairs and defence matters, New Zealand has a constitutional responsibility to assist on issues of...

Cook Islands formalises diplomatic ties with Azerbaijan

Prime Minister Mark Brown and Mukhtar Babayev, then Azerbaijani Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, who met in August 2024, within the margins of the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Tonga. MFAI/25050113 Cook Islands and the...

The Cook Islands declared a dengue outbreak in Rarotonga last week

Berlin Kafoa, director, of the public health division at The Pacific Community (SPC) says*: What is the immediate threat posed by dengue in the Pacific region, and how is this changing? "1. Increasing morbidity due to escalating dengue outbreaks...

Experts warn Dengue fever outbreak surge driven by climate change

Dengue fever cases in Samoa, Fiji, and Tonga have surged to the highest levels in a decade, with experts warning climate change is driving year-round transmission across the Pacific. Samoa, Fiji, and Tonga are battling their worst dengue fever...

‘Healthier future’ for Cook Islands as four Pa Enua go smoke-free

Children from four different schools took the stage as four Pa Enua islands were declared smoke-free at the National Auditorium yesterday. TALAIA MIKA/25060339, 25060340, 25060341, 25060342, 25060343 Four islands in the southern Pa Enua – Atiu,...

Rise in dengue fever outbreaks across the Pacific driven by the climate crisis, experts say

The climate crisis is driving a sharp rise in dengue fever cases across the Pacific islands, experts say, as infections hit their highest level in a decade and several countries declare emergencies. Pacific Island countries and territories have...

UN report: Five charts showing how global deforestation is declining

The amount of forest lost around the world has reduced by millions of hectares each year in recent decades, but countries are still off track to meet “important” deforestation targets. These are the findings of the Global Forest Resources...

China, Cook Islands foreign ministers vow to strengthen cooperation

Both China and the Cook Islands should leverage their complementary advantages in practical cooperation, strengthen collaboration in key areas, such as marine resource development and protection, and better support the Cook Islands' economic...

CIFA launches inaugural futsal competition in Cook Islands

A youngster celebrates scoring a goal during week one of the Cook Islands Football Association Friday Night Futsal competition at the National Sports Arena in Nikao last Friday. CIFA MEDIA/25052707 Cook Islands Football Association (CIFA) is proud...

Rarotonga clears over 8000 legacy wastes in major environmental push

National Environment Service and Cook Islands General Transport saw the collection of 1741 electronic waste items, 1507 whiteware and household appliances, and 346 ELVs collected and processed in June alone. NES/24110502/25080613 The National...