Edgar Cocker has been appointed Chief Secretary and Secretary to Cabinet for the Prime Minister’s Office, with effect today for a period of four years, Tonga's Public Service Commission announced today.

Edgar was CEO for the Ministry of Commerce, Consumer, Trade, Innovation and Labour, from October, 2017 to 4 February, 2019, and has worked locally and regionally in government and the private sector.

From Ma’ufanga, Tongatapu, Mr Cocker holds a Master of Business Administration (1991) and a Master of Science in Community Economic Development (1990) from New Hampshire College (now Southern New Hampshire University), New Hampshire, USA.

He was first appointed to the public service in 2007 as the Director of Tourism for the then Ministry of Tourism, and has held various positions in the private sector at the Shipping Corporation of Polynesia Ltd, Tonga Water Board, Friendly Islands Marketing Corporation from 1982 to 1992. From May 1992 until December, 2000 he was the Marketing, Trade, Investment and Product Development Advisor for the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS), Fiji. He was the Director for the Cooperative Research, Education and Extension Services under the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Northern Mariana Islands from 2001 to November, 2005.