May 2025
Summary Statement
The Cook Islands is demonstrating how a country-driven, multi-agency strategy can drive structural transformation in delivering climate action. With embedded support from the Climate Finance Capacity Support Programme (CFCSP), the government has mobilised a coordinated suite of roles across monitoring, evaluation, research and learning (MERL), finance, infrastructure, tourism and energy. Collectively, these roles are delivering foundational reforms that reduce risk, strengthen systems and enhance cross-government coordination and are enabling the Cook Islands to scale its climate ambition and access international finance.
With coordinated support from the CFCSP, embedded technical roles across key government agencies are addressing longstanding institutional bottlenecks in planning, reporting, infrastructure resilience and stakeholder coordination. They are laying the groundwork for a more responsive, inclusive and climate-conscious public sector. While the work remains in its early stages, the country is now positioned to better plan, deliver and account for climate investments in line with national and international priorities.
Context and Challenge
The Cook Islands is highly exposed to the impacts of climate change. Increasingly intense cyclones, sea-level rise, saltwater intrusion and shifting rainfall patterns threaten lives, livelihoods and public infrastructure. As a nation committed to sustainable development, the Cook Islands has made climate change a central focus of its National Sustainable Development Agenda (NSDA) 2020+ and its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement. However, strong policy ambition has long outpaced implementation capacity.
Core challenges have persisted across government: outdated financial systems have weakened fiscal accountability; fragmented infrastructure data has slowed resilient investment planning; and siloed institutional arrangements have made it difficult to coordinate cross-sectoral climate change action. These constraints have limited the country’s ability to access and effectively manage international climate finance, including resources from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the Adaptation Fund.
Recognising these barriers, the Government of the Cook Islands identified the need to strengthen national systems while also securing targeted technical and engineering expertise to drive forward specific projects. In response, the CFCSP worked alongside key national counterparts to design and deliver a tailored package of support that combines system-strengthening assistance with discrete technical inputs. This approach aims to reduce delivery risks, improve institutional systems, strengthen coordination across ministries, and provide hands-on technical and engineering support where needed — all with the goal of building lasting capacity and enabling the Cook Islands to advance its climate resilience efforts more effectively.
Intervention: A Multi-Sectoral, Country-Led Strategy
The CFCSP has embedded 8 technical roles:
A Senior MERL Specialist within the Ministry of Finance and Economic Management (MFEM) to revitalise the Tarai Vaka Process (TVP) which is the national activity management system.
A Financial Reporting Specialist within the MFEM Treasury to address a backlog of unaudited financial statements and introduce International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS).
A Senior Asset Engineer within the Infrastructure Cook Islands (ICI) to strengthen asset lifecycle planning.
A Climate Risk and Resilience Engineer within the Cook Islands Investment Corporation (CIIC) to lead vulnerability assessments and adaptation planning for public health infrastructure.
A Renewable Energy Engineer working with CIIC and Te Mana Uira o Araura (TMU) to coordinate the design and procurement of the Aitutaki Stage 2 energy upgrade.
A Project Lead and Project Coordinator within the Cook Islands Tourism Corporation (CIT) to manage the Destination Stewardship Plan and national tourism certification reform.
A Lead Consultant to guide participatory strategy development for tourism governance within Cook Islands Tourism.
Together, this capacity support not only strengthens individual ministries but also promotes cross-ministry collaboration, helping government agencies work more effectively across sectors on shared climate priorities. It reflects a deliberate strategy by the Cook Islands to use the CFCSP to embed long-term, systems-based solutions – working from within government to strengthen institutional foundations, align technical and operational work to climate priorities, and ensure that ministries have both the system reforms and the engineering expertise needed to deliver on the Cook Islands’ climate goals.
Early Signs of Positive Change
Building a Resilient Tourism Future
The Project Lead, Project Coordinator and Lead Consultant embedded in the CIT are driving the development of the Destination Stewardship Plan and the refresh of the national tourism certification scheme. Evidence of progress includes the formation of the Tourism Leadership Advisory Group and the Project Management Unit, improved coordination with ministries such as Environment, Finance, and Infrastructure, and the integration of gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI) principles into tourism governance. New tourism standards and sustainability indicators are being developed, with stakeholder consultations strengthening alignment across agencies. These reforms are already shaping how the sector integrates climate action and responsible tourism practices, and they provide a strong platform for scaling sustainable tourism governance over the coming years.
Restoring Trust through Financial Reform
The Financial Reporting Specialist embedded in the MFEM has made strong progress tackling a multi-year backlog of unaudited financial statements. IPSAS-compliant templates are now 90% complete, and the FY 2020–23 Statement of Appropriations has been submitted for audit, restoring momentum in public financial reporting. Systemic issues uncovered during the review process, such as data inconsistencies and mismatched balances, are being corrected, improving data quality and accuracy. National staff, particularly in the Crown accounting team, report improved understanding of reconciliation processes, and new workflows are being developed to prevent future backlogs. These changes are strengthening public trust, improving fiduciary oversight, and preparing the Cook Islands for direct access to larger streams of international climate finance.
Strengthening Project Governance through Monitoring and Learning
The Senior MERL Specialist embedded within MFEM has revitalised the TVP, delivering redesigned templates, activity results frameworks and user-friendly reporting guides. Consultations with MPPS teams and sectoral ministries have led to greater alignment between national priorities and agency-level activities, while upcoming training and capacity building initiatives will embed these improvements into routine practice. Government staff are already applying new MERL skills to improve project designs and sharpen reporting outputs, supporting a stronger culture of results-based planning and accountability. These reforms will help ensure the Cook Islands can credibly track and report on climate investments, a critical factor for long-term climate finance readiness.
Engineering Resilience in Health Infrastructure
The Climate Risk and Resilience Engineering team (BECA), working with the CIIC, has completed detailed community vulnerability risk assessments (CVRAs) for key health facilities on Rarotonga and is extending this work across the Pa Enua. The CVRAs include prioritised risk registers, adaptation options and cost estimates to guide future investment decisions. CIIC engineers are receiving direct mentorship and are learning to apply the CVRA tools and interpret risk assessments independently. This work is already shaping infrastructure planning discussions and the development of terms of reference for detailed design work. By embedding both technical and institutional capacity, the intervention ensures that resilience planning can continue beyond the external support period.
Building Fit-for-Purpose Infrastructure Systems
The Senior Asset Engineer embedded in CIIC is driving reforms to modernise infrastructure asset management across government. Updated lifecycle planning procedures, structured work order systems, and improved use of Asset Finda have strengthened data management and long-term planning. Climate risk assessments are now being operationalised through a detailed risk register, which includes concept-level mitigations for Rarotonga, Tupapa and Arorangi, and is undergoing final reviews before submission to CIIC. Alongside this, quantitative and qualitative assessments – including benchmark analyses, extracted scan data, and a tailored risk matrix – are directly informing infrastructure investment decisions to align with national resilience priorities. Technical mentoring is underway, helping CIIC staff develop cost-benefit analyses, maintenance prioritisation strategies, and standardised reporting practices. These efforts are fostering stronger cross-agency collaboration, supporting a shift away from reactive maintenance toward proactive, climate-informed asset management, and positioning the Cook Islands to demonstrate readiness for future climate finance investments.
Powering Aitutaki’s Future through Renewable Energy
The Renewable Energy Engineer, working alongside the Entura team, has played a central role in advancing the Aitutaki Stage 2 Renewable Energy Project. Following a feasibility reassessment, the system design was expanded to include 2.0 MWp of solar PV, 1.5 MW/6 MWh of battery storage, and advanced hybrid control systems, raising the renewable share to an expected 65% and halving diesel consumption. Procurement documents are finalised and ready for tender, with contractor selection and pre-commissioning preparations on the horizon. The project also includes provisions for local capacity building, with TMU staff receiving training in system operations, fault diagnosis and maintenance. By embedding GEDSI safeguards and community engagement mechanisms into the project, the initiative strengthens not only technical systems but also social and governance outcomes, showcasing how targeted technical support can help deliver transformational, inclusive, finance-ready climate solutions.
Why this Matters
The progress achieved through the CFCSP-supported roles in the Cook Islands reflects more than isolated technical inputs – it points to the development of stronger institutional and structural systems and skills required for more effective climate finance management. These roles are not only filling immediate capacity gaps but are reshaping how public institutions coordinate, plan and deliver on climate priorities.
To summarise the key interventions: the strengthening of financial reporting systems underpins public sector fiduciary credibility; enhanced MERL practices improve the government’s ability to track performance and inform adaptive management; upgraded infrastructure asset systems move the country from reactive maintenance toward evidence-based, climate-resilient investment planning; and renewable energy and tourism governance reforms demonstrate how sectoral transitions can be aligned under a coherent national climate strategy. Together, these interventions reflect a shift toward integrated, systems-based approaches where capacity transfer, cross-ministry coordination, and institutionalisation of new practices are prioritised over short-term project delivery.
This matters because the ability to access and effectively use international climate finance increasingly depends on a country’s readiness at both technical and institutional levels – and with the support being provided under the CFCSP the Cook Islands will be better positioned to meet those standards, supported by a deliberate, country-owned strategy that is aligning systems, strengthening governance and embedding climate ambition across its public administration.
Next Steps
As outlined in the revised CFCSP Cook Islands Country Work Plan (May 2025), the next phase of CFCSP support will focus on scaling and sustaining the gains already made. Key priorities include finalising and rolling out national TVP training across ministries to ensure consistent use and understanding of the system and completing IPSAS audit templates to accelerate progress on clearing the financial statement backlog. In the tourism sector, the focus will shift to institutionalising governance frameworks through new legislation and policies, while in the energy sector, efforts will centre on procuring and initiating construction of Aitutaki’s renewable energy upgrade.
Additionally, the CFCSP will mobilise new technical roles to support critical areas such as public financial management legal reform, energy policy development and climate finance planning. There will also be an emphasis on operationalising GEDSI frameworks in collaboration with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, ensuring that GEDSI principles are meaningfully embedded across all sectors.
Conclusion
The Cook Islands is making steady progress in translating climate commitments into practical, system-wide improvements. With embedded support from the CFCSP, the government has begun addressing longstanding institutional gaps, improving cross-sector collaboration, and building technical capacity across key ministries. Early results – including financial reporting improvements, MERL system upgrades, strengthened infrastructure planning, energy project preparation, and tourism governance reforms – show that targeted technical assistance, combined with government ownership, can help put key building blocks in place.
This example shows how a strategically sequenced portfolio of support that is tailored to a country’s priorities and delivered through trusted institutions can achieve far more than the sum of its parts. It demonstrates how the CFCSP model of embedded, adaptive and cross-sectoral capacity support can catalyse systemic change in climate finance readiness across the Pacific.