COOK ISLANDS: Stewardship over growth with new Destination Plan

Beautiful Cook Islands – Image: Slobodan Tomic/Unsplash

The Pacific tourism sector is steadily moving towards a more sustainable and responsible future, with the Cook Islands becoming one of the latest regional success stories following the launch of its new Destination Stewardship Plan 2026–2030. The launch of the plan marks a significant shift in tourism development for the Cook Islands, placing stewardship, community wellbeing, cultural preservation and environmental protection at the centre of the country’s tourism agenda.

Developed through extensive national consultations and endorsed by Cabinet in late 2025 with the funding support from the New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, through the Climate Finance Capacity Support Programme, the Destination Stewardship Plan (DSP), “Te Kaveinga Mana Tiaki o Te Ipukarea,” reflects a broader movement across the Pacific where countries are increasingly recognising the importance of sustainable tourism policies, standards and governance frameworks to guide long-term tourism development.

Cook Islands: Stewardship over growth

The Cook Islands’ approach strongly aligns with regional priorities under the 2030 Pacific Sustainable Tourism Policy Framework, which promotes a balanced approach to tourism development across four key pillars — economic, community, cultural, and environmental. These priorities are mirrored in the four dimensions of the Cook Islands Destination Stewardship Plan: economy, community, culture and environment.

The plan also complements the wider vision of the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent, which calls for stronger regional cooperation and sustainable management of the Pacific’s natural and cultural resources to ensure long-term resilience and prosperity.

The launch of the new Destination Stewardship Plan – From left: Responsible Tourism Project Lead Lisa Sadaraka, Deputy New Zealand High Commissioner Ryan Brown, and Cook Islands Tourism Chief Executive Officer Karla Eggelton – Image: CIT/Cook Islands News

With tourism contributing around 70 per cent of the Cook Islands’ GDP, the country’s leaders say the transition towards stewardship is both timely and necessary. Prime Minister Mark Brown said the country must ensure that tourism growth protects “our people, our culture, our environment.”

Cook Islands’s priorities: environmental sustainability, cultural identity, community wellbeing and climate resilience

Cook Islands Tourism Chief Executive Officer Karla Eggelton said the plan signals a shared responsibility between government, businesses and communities to ensure tourism supports wellbeing, shared prosperity and the protection of the country for future generations.

The Pacific region has increasingly recognised that strong policies and regulatory frameworks are essential to ensuring tourism development remains sustainable, resilient and inclusive. Alongside the Cook Islands, countries such as Fiji are progressing work on national tourism legislation and tourism standards reforms, while the Marshall Islands recently launched its High-Level Sustainable Tourism Policy and Development Strategy.

These developments reflect a wider regional shift away from tourism models focused solely on visitor growth, towards approaches that prioritise environmental sustainability, cultural identity, community wellbeing and climate resilience.

As a member country of the South Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO), the Cook Islands has also benefited from regional collaboration and technical support in advancing sustainable tourism priorities.  The launch of the Destination Stewardship Plan 2026–2030 is being viewed as a major milestone not only for the Cook Islands, but also for the wider Pacific tourism industry as the region works collectively towards a more sustainable and responsible tourism future.

NAN/CIT 18-05-26

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