This community programme mirrors the Vaka Pride for Rarotonga, Te Vaka o Ru for Aitutaki, Te Ieie O Te Orau for Mauke as an effective multi-agency platform
established for tourism and community development. The students of Apii Enuamanu held a competition to finalise their community programme name which was announced during a special assembly.

“Te Paa Tiare O Enuamanu” was the name chosen by the Atiu Tourism Industry Council for their community programme. The Atiu Tourism Industry Council chose this name as it relates to the protection of the natural forest of Atiu. Mareta Atetu, Atiu visitor information officer for Cook Islands Tourism mentioned that “this name resonates well with island of Atiu, as Enuamanu is widely known for its biodiversity.”

Siblings, Ngatokoa and Jamil Tipoki received $200 for their winning name. Christian Mani, Director of Destination Development during the opening of the launch said, “Te Paa Tiare O Enuamanu will be an ongoing programme that will contribute to sustainable outcomes for the people of Atiu and the local tourism industry.”
“This community programme started in Rarotonga in 2015 and has extended to the islands of Aitutaki, Mauke and now Atiu” explains Mani. Although the programme has been formatted to the context of each island, the overall judging remains the same with general tidiness in public areas, revival of traditional practices and beautification efforts being the underlying themes. For all four islands the judging rounds occur every four months, which means three times a year, communities can win or be rewarded for small projects in their villages.

The launch of Te Paa Tiare O Enuamanu on the island of Atiu was successful with community groups excited to kick start the first round of Te Paa Tiare O Enuamanu for the end of June. At the end of each round, a total of $2,500 will be distributed to community groups on Atiu based the Atiu Tourism Industry Council who are designated as the Te Paa Tiare O Enuamanu committee.

A tremendous amount of work has gone into this community programme and Cook Islands Tourism Corporation would like to acknowledge all those involved for their contributions to the success of the newly established Te Paa Tiare O Enuamanu.