Country profile
Coastal fisheries snapshot
demersal fish (including emperors, snappers, parrotfish and aquarium fish), invertebrates for export (e.g. trochus) and gleaned from intertidal habitats (e.g. giant clam), and nearshore pelagic fish (including tuna and flying fish) using a range of fishing methods.
Top 5 training topics
Gender participation
Male participations: 126 (50%) · Female participations: 125 (50%)
Yearly participations (2016–2025)
Projected changes in atmospheric & ocean climate (by 2050)
Relative to 1995-2014 baseline. Regional CMIP6 projections applied to Cook Islands's climate zone (Southwest Pacific Convergence).
Coastal fisheries (current vs 2050)
demersal fish (including emperors, snappers, parrotfish and aquarium fish), invertebrates for export (e.g. trochus) and gleaned from intertidal habitats (e.g. giant clam), and nearshore pelagic fish (including tuna and flying fish) using a range of fishing methods.
Oceanic fisheries (current vs 2050)
Tuna fisheries — skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye and albacore. Habitat areas projected to shift with ocean temperature, stratification and oxygen content changes.
Freshwater & estuarine fisheries (current vs 2050)
Inland fisheries are expected to be affected by changes in rainfall patterns, river flow, and habitat accessibility by 2050.
Aquaculture (current vs 2050)
Mariculture impacted by sea surface temperature, ocean acidification and intense storms. Freshwater aquaculture may benefit from increased freshwater habitat but face disease and temperature pressure.
pearl oysters, milkfish and giant clams (ranching for wild restocking)
Livelihoods & economies (current vs 2050)
Fisheries and aquaculture provide household income, jobs and government revenue. Climate-driven changes will affect employment and economic contribution.
Aquatic food security (current vs 2050)
Aquatic (blue) foods provide an important source of nutrition. Population growth combined with climate impacts may create deficits in fish supply.
Blue food production systems (current vs 2050)
Blue foods contribute to nutrition security, economies, livelihoods and jobs. Climate impacts on coastal, oceanic, freshwater fisheries and aquaculture together determine the system's resilience.
make key contributions to nutrition security and health, economies, and livelihoods and jobs. Compared to other Pacific islands, projected climate impacts to blue food production by 2050 are medium to high.
Recommended adaptation: Food & nutrition security
- Implement sustainable ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management Food and Nutrition 2
- Diversify blue food production systems Food and Nutrition 7
Recommended adaptation: Sustainable livelihoods
- Apply innovative technologies and climate-smart tools for pond aquaculture and mariculture Livelihoods 3
- Improve technical and business viability of fisheries
Recommended adaptation: Economies & government revenue
- Develop policies and strategies that integrate climate change implications into fisheries and aquaculture management
- Implement energy efficiency programs for fisheries and aquaculture Economic Revenue 4
- Climate-proof infrastructure
Community-based Fisheries Management — Cook Islands
Source: Govan & Lalavanua 2022 (SPC), updated from FAO & SPC Outlook 2026. See the regional CBFM Report for full analysis.
Coastal fisheries in Cook Islands
demersal fish (including emperors, snappers, parrotfish and aquarium fish), invertebrates for export (e.g. trochus) and gleaned from intertidal habitats (e.g. giant clam), and nearshore pelagic fish (including tuna and flying fish) using a range of fishing methods.
Tuna fisheries in Cook Islands
The Pacific is home to the world's largest tuna fishery, with member countries' EEZs producing over half of the global tuna catch. Cook Islands's EEZ covers 1,830,000 km², providing significant access to tuna and other oceanic resources.
Fisheries Contributions to Cook Islands's Economy
Harvest by sector (1999 → 2021)
Volume and economic value of fisheries production by sector, from successive Benefish studies. Use the toggle to switch between volume (tonnes) and value (NZ$).
Fishing contribution to GDP
Official contribution of fishing (and aquaculture, where included) to Cook Islands's GDP, in NZ$ (millions). The line shows the percentage of total GDP.
Key findings from Benefish Study 4
6.2 Contribution of fishing to GDP
Current official contribution The Statistics Office of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Management refers to the fishing sector as "fishing and pearls". The official contribution of this sector to GDP is given in Table 6-5. Fishing (including pearls) 1.5 1.6 2.3 1.2 2.0 GDP at market prices 486.4 524.2 575.4 437.0 463.3 Fishing as a % of GDP 0.3% 0.3% 0.4% 0.3% 0.
Full chapter section in Benefish Study 4 →
6.3 Exports of fishery production
Data on fishery exports of the Cook Islands were kindly provided by staff of Cook Islands Statistics Office staff. Those exports are detailed and compared to all exports of the country in Table 6-8. Live fish Fresh or chilled fish Pearls Pearl shell Total fisheries exports Total exports Fisheries as a % of total exports 2013 19 12,129 142 49 12,339 12,984 95.0% 2014 91 20,350 364 0 20,805 21,276 97.8% 2015 49 19,344 158 167 19,718 20,162 97.8% 2016 22 18,717 297 42 19,078 19,606 97.
Full chapter section in Benefish Study 4 →
6.4 Government revenue from fisheries
Access fees for offshore fishing Data on revenue from fisheries were kindly provided by staff of the Cook Islands Statistics Office (Table 6-9). Fisheries U.S. Treaty 5,358.00 8,043.00 5,888.00 Fishing licenses 15,164.00 5,219.00 3,842.00 Fishing fines 2,263.00 238.00 836.00 It is assumed that the categories "Fisheries U.S. Treaty" and "Fishing Licenses" involve payments for access by fishing vessels. Government revenue in the financial year 2020/21 was NZ$206.
Full chapter section in Benefish Study 4 →
6.5 Fisheries-related employment
The Cook Islands 2015/16 HIES (CISO 2018a) contains information about fisheries-related employment: • 2.7% of all households receive at least some cash for fishing activities. • 18% of all households participate in fisheries. • 3% of all households sell a portion of their fisheries harvest. 44 Fisheries in the Economies of Pacific Islands Countries and Territories (Benefish Study 4) The Cook Islands Population Census 2016 (CISO 2018b) has fisheries employment data but for much of the detailed information, fisheries is lumped with other sectors to form the category "agricultural, forestry and fishery workers", reducing its utility for fisheries purposes. The census does provide information on household participation in fisheries (Table 6-10).
Full chapter section in Benefish Study 4 →
6.6 Fish consumption
The following are some findings of older studies on fish consumption in Cook Islands: • Preston (2000) used 1995 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) data on production, imports and exports to estimate the annual per capita fish consumption in the Cook Islands to be 63.2 kg. • Passfield (1997) gives the annual per capita consumption of fish on Tongareva Island as 219.0 kg. • MMR (2000) states that Cook Islanders consume, on average, 47.0 kg of seafood per person per year.
Full chapter section in Benefish Study 4 →
Cook Islands — country resources
Direct access to country-specific chapters, regional report cards and economic studies.