China is providing the Cook Islands with more than 7 million US dollars to fix up several public buildings it constructed for the country.
The Cook Islands Police headquarters in Rarotonga Photo: RNZI / Mary Baines
The Cook Islands Finance Minister Mark Brown told the Cook Islands News the project would take almost two years and start in the next couple of months.
The paper reports the Ministry of Justice, the police headquarters and the sports arena building have deteriorated over the years and are in need of repairs.
Mr Brown said it was a big repair job and China had undertaken to ensure it fixed "substandard" work done previously.
The buildings are owned and managed by the Cook Islands Investment Corporation and were built by the Chinese through China's Overseas Development Assistance programme.
Mr Brown said the buildings were to be totally refurbished and the Chinese were funding the job "to the tune of NZ$9 to 10 million".
No "white elephants"
The refurbishment news comes amid blunt criticism from Australia's International Development Minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells that China was constructing "useless buildings" and "roads to nowhere" in the region.
She said China was lending money to Pacific island countries on unfavourable terms , and had constructed buildings "which nobody maintains, which are basically white elephants."
Mr Brown said the Cook Islands was well aware of shortcomings of some of China's projects in the region.
He said it was mostly due to a lack of oversight locally in the design and project management.
"In terms of 'white elephant' buildings, that may apply to other countries, but certainly not the Cook Islands," he told the paper.
"For a small island micro economy, the capital cost of infrastructure remains a big challenge, so any assistance we get from development partners to help us in our infrastructure cost is most welcome," he said.
China defends aid efforts in Pacific
China has hit back at Australia's criticism of its foreign aid to the Pacific, saying it will continue with such support.
Last week Australia's International Development Minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells told the Australian newspaper China was constructing "useless buildings" and "roads to nowhere" in the region.
She also said she was concerned that some Pacific countries were taking on debts from China they could not afford to repay.
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Lu Kang, told journalists in Beijing they were groundless accusations against China borne out of reluctance to see Pacific islands realise independent and sustainable development.
He sayid no strings were attached to China's assistance and it's greatly boosted countries' development.