In meet-and-greet with Cook Islands community elders in Auckland on Friday, Cooks PM Mark Brown articulates his vision for his people in Aotearoa and the Ipukarea.
Auckland-based Cook Islanders have been told the hunt is on for a new consular office in Auckland, with bureaucratic proof of identity processes also set for streamlining in 2026.
Cook Islands Prime Minister (PM) Mark Brown shared the news at a Friday evening community gathering at the Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT) Pasifika Community Centre in South Auckland.
The PM’s visit, which included a meeting earlier in the week in Wellington, focused on reconnecting with Cook Islanders living in Aotearoa while reinforcing the enduring Cook Islands-New Zealand relationship.
The Auckland event, from ceremonial welcome to closing prayer, was delivered in reo Māori and included a direct state-of-the-nation update from the leader.
Setting the pace, Brown addressed both the lack of a physical Auckland consular presence – closed in 2020 because of Covid-19 – and the cumbersome paperwork required for Cook Islands proof-of-identity for diaspora travellers.
The PM continued the 60-year anniversary threads from his Wellington session, speaking to identity, economic resilience, and the need to strengthen links between the pa enua, the capital, and the Cook Islands diaspora.
A key aspect of those links is the budget-breaking cost of travel by sea and air. The Cooks will soon welcome a new vessel for inter-island shipping, touted by Brown as a key update on travel costs, which continue to be a burden for those living in the most remote communities, or pa enua, of the 15-island nation.
Auckland-based Pa Enua Tokerau communities number in the tens of thousands, with many already saving for travel once the new vessel and Manihiki Airport upgrade become reflected in ticket prices.
From education to tourism, health, and workforce opportunities, there is much work to be done and more diaspora hands needed, PM Brown and other speakers noted.
The call to Cook Islanders to make the most of opportunities in New Zealand, Australia, and beyond, while also looking homewards, was echoed by new Foreign Affairs and Immigration Secretary Elizabeth Wright-Koteka and the President of the House of Ariki, Te Kaumaiti Travel Tou Ariki. Te Kaumaiti especially welcomed the inclusion of Tereora College youth at the community event.
On NZ–Cook Islands relations, Brown said conversations with Wellington are continuing, with a brief, joint statement released on Friday following an informal meeting with NZ Foreign Minister Winston Peters earlier that day. The release noting no further statements would be made.
On seabed mining, Brown reiterated that it would be for Cook Islands legislation—not any government or other party—to decide. He stressed how legislation already embeds the values of resource protection, and that legal frameworks, including the precautionary principles in Cook Islands law safeguarding the nation’s ocean heritage, would continue to guide any decision on seabed activity beyond exploration.
