Cook Islands has secured a joint funding pledge of over $100 million from the United States and New Zealand to upgrade the critical lifeline port on Penrhyn, boosting safety, trade, and regional connectivity, Cook Island News reports.
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau announced the project in Palau today ahead of the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting.
The United States and New Zealand intend to co-fund the project. The U.S. Department of State, working with Congress, will contribute US$50 million (approximately $NZ84 million) and New Zealand will contribute $NZ17.5 million (approximately US$10 million), according to a joint press statement.
Deputy Secretary Landau said this project underscores the United States’ strong commitment to its partners in the Pacific and “builds on the Critical Minerals Framework the United States and the Cook Islands signed earlier this year”.
“It also highlights our historic ties to Penrhyn atoll, where U.S. personnel constructed Penrhyn’s port and airstrip over 80 years ago. Through transformational infrastructure initiatives such as this, we are making the United States and our partners safer, stronger, and more prosperous.”
New Zealand will implement the project in close coordination with the Cook Islands and the United States.
“This is a positive and hugely significant initiative that demonstrates the strength of New
Zealand’s partnerships with both the Cook Islands and the United States,” Peters says.
“We are very pleased to be able to partner with the United States and the Cook Islands
Governments to deliver this development priority for the Cook Islands, drawing on New
Zealand’s experience in infrastructure delivery across the Pacific.”
Prime Minister Brown thanked the United States and New Zealand for partnering with the Cook Islands “to deliver on a priority our people have themselves identified”.
“This port is a lifeline for Tongareva allowing for safer landings, better access to services, and
stronger connections between our Pa Enua and the world,” he said. “This wharf upgrade complements our new domestic shipping investments and our own efforts in improving transport connections for our Pa Enua.”
Penrhyn (also called Tongareva) is the northernmost island in the Cook Islands, and its port is at the village of Omoka. Upgraded port facilities will deliver safety and security benefits, as well as expand transport links and economic opportunities for the northern Cook Islands.
