The Solomon Islands and Cook Islands are exploring new areas of cooperation in tourism and culture, following a meeting between the two countries’ Ministers on the sidelines of the 54th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Honiara on Friday.
Solomon Islands Minister for Culture and Tourism, Hon. Choylin Douglas, and Cook Islands Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Hon. Tingika Elikana, discussed potential collaboration in labour mobility in the tourism and hospitality sector, as well as cultural diplomacy through traditional canoe building and voyaging.
“We’re looking at ways to strengthen our Pacific family ties through cultural and economic cooperation,” said Minister Douglas.
“These discussions reflect the deep cultural and economic ties that bind our Pacific family, and the opportunities we have to learn from each other and grow together.”
Both Ministers acknowledged the importance of the tourism and hospitality industry to their respective economies and expressed keen interest in exploring a bilateral labour mobility arrangement.
This initiative would provide opportunities for Solomon Islanders to gain valuable work experience in the Cook Islands tourism and hospitality sector, while also supporting workforce needs in the Cook Islands.
The Ministers also explored the possibility of establishing cultural cooperation centered on the traditional art of canoe building and voyaging.
The Solomon Islands, with its rich forestry resources and traditional knowledge, could provide a foundation for collaboration with the Cook Islands in reviving and sustaining the practice of traditional canoe construction.
This initiative would not only preserve shared cultural heritage but also strengthen people-to-people connections across the Pacific.
The ministers agreed to develop a framework for cooperation, potentially leading to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), and tasked their officials with progressing the development of a formal agreement.
– GOVT COM UNIT
