Budget 2022’s investment in whānau Māori will lead to economic security for all of Aotearoa. This year’s Māori Budget package builds on the Government’s previous investments in areas like health, education, employment, economic development, tamariki, and whānau wellbeing.
Read the full release here and find out more about each investment below.
Last updated: Monday, 12 February 2024 | Rāhina, 12 Huitanguru, 2024
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Whānau Resilience
Whānau resilience focuses on wāhine and rangatahi
$28.5 million over two years
This initiative focuses on strengthening whānau resilience through developing wāhine and rangatahi Māori leadership.
Te Puni Kōkiri will work directly with communities to develop programmes based on local knowledge and intelligence. This initiative supports development, leadership, and culturally focused programmes which lift the skills of wāhine and rangatahi, strengthening their resilience factors, enabling a faster recovery from COVID-19, and laying the foundations for the future.
The initiative will extend the Pae Aronui programme, build on Te Taiohi Ararau and enable the expansion of the Rangatahi Manawaroa programme. It will also provide funding for new wāhine Māori leadership activities.
Whānau Ora
Continuing to support whānau to maintain and build resilience
$166.5 million over four years
The future of Whānau Ora is secure with a commitment of $166.5 million over four years to the three Whānau Ora Commissioning Agencies.
Whānau Ora places whānau at the centre of decision-making and supports them to lift their wellbeing by providing the tools and support to pursue and achieve their own aspirations.
Commissioning Agencies will receive a 50% increase to their annual budget. This will enable them to continue their support of tens of thousands of whānau to maintain and build their resilience as we move forward from COVID-19.
The forms of support the Whānau Ora commissioning model enables include:
- Navigators, who work with whānau to develop whānau plans, set goals and support them to achieve short, medium, and long-term outcomes.
- Short-term direct support to remove barriers preventing whānau from focusing on their whānau plan and aspirations.
- Innovative support initiatives focused on whānau resilience, including:
- Social enterprise and investments that fund whānau, community groups and businesses to run an initiative or programme that will support them and their hāpori
- Food sustainability programmes
- Health and mental health support
- Education support.
Cadetships
Continuing to improve Māori employment outcomes through Cadetships
$25 million over four years
The continued investment into the Cadetships programme supports Māori with employer-led training, development, and mentoring, benefitting Māori employees and employers in high growth sectors.
The programme supports Māori to grow intergenerational wealth and wellbeing through greater access to economic opportunities.
It will maintain the recent expansion of this successful and flexible programme, allowing around 1,200 cadets to be supported each year, ensuring more individuals, whānau and employers will benefit.
Progressive Procurement
Boosting the Māori economy through Progressive Procurement
$26 million over two years
The Progressive Procurement initiative will receive a further $26.0 million investment over the next two years to achieve the government’s aim to diversify government spend on goods and services and increase Māori business engagement with government procurement.
Progressive procurement will improve economic outcomes for Māori businesses and employees and help make the government procurement landscape more accessible for Māori businesses.
The funding will be directed towards:
- Scaling up local networks in regions to grow awareness of government opportunities and build capability.
- Providing targeted one-to-one support to Māori businesses that are ready to deliver procurement solutions but need to lift capability to navigate and engage effectively in government tender processes.
- Developing a centralised Māori business database.
- Continuing to engage with and build capability of government agencies to achieve long-term change in government procurement processes.
Māori Media
Positioning the Māori media sector for the future
$40 million over two years
This $40.0 million investment over two years provides significant further resource to Māori Television, iwi radio and Te Māngai Pāho to support the industry to transition to a new public media environment.
Māori media plays a vital role in normalising and revitalising te reo Māori. The funding will support te reo Māori to be a living, thriving language.
The funding will support:
- $8 million to support the development of a sector-wide workforce strategy and growing current workforce development initiatives.
- $12 million to maintain and grow iwi media collaboration with news and current affairs.
- $20 million to support the creation of innovative content that reflects Māori language, culture, stories, and perspectives.
Te Ringa Hāpai Infrastructure Fund
Realising aspirations for whenua Māori
$10 million over one year
The investment of a further $10.0 million will boost work underway with Māori landowners to realise their aspirations for their whenua.
The funding further enables landowners to undertake whenua-based economic, cultural, social and environmental projects. It will support whānau to realise the potential of their whenua by encouraging Māori-led local solutions through a whānau-centred community development approach.
Investment will be targeted to projects focused on the development of infrastructure to unlock whenua Māori to improve economic, cultural, social and environmental outcomes.
Te Pae Tawhiti
Protecting mātauranga Māori and taonga
$27 million over four years
Te Pae Tawhiti initiative aims to protect and utilise mātauranga Māori and other taonga.
Te Pae Tawhiti work acknowledges and protects the important role of Māori as kaitiaki of their mātauranga Māori (traditional knowledge) and taonga (treasures).
The focus of this funding will be in unlocking the significant economic and cultural benefits for Aotearoa New Zealand through intellectual property, genetic resources and international forums.
Funding will support Te Puni Kōkiri to work with Māori and across government, businesses, and other interests to develop a whole of Aotearoa New Zealand approach regarding the use and effective protection of mātauranga Māori and other taonga.
New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute
Toi Māori and Māori culture safeguarded through Budget 2022 investment
$1.9 million over one year
New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute (NZMACI) is an important centre of learning about ahurea and toi Māori. This one-off funding of $1.9 million over 1 year will allow its work to continue, giving students and educators assurance and continuity.
Funding will ensure the ongoing protection, promotion, and use of mātauranga Māori, Māori arts and culture, in accordance with its functions under statute. Māori culture is important to Māori wellbeing and a unique feature of our country.
In previous years, NZMACI received regular funding from Te Puia, the tourism entity covering Te Whakarewarewa Geothermal Valley on the edge of Rotorua. This funding has not been available since the closure of the borders due to COVID-19.