Te Ripoata o te Manahautū, Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Awa
E āku iti, e āku rahi tēnā tātau katoa.
In the first half of the financial year to December 2019, we had been directing resources to a medium to long-term focus on tourism, self-sustainability and self-directed futures. A number of projects were conceived to further these objectives – at both Rūnanga and commercial Group levels – and some in conjunction with partners. Work on these was suspended with the Whakaari eruption, and our response to that terrible event, followed shortly after by Covid-19. When the lockdown was declared on 25 March 2020, Ngāti Awa marae, our social and health Service, Te Tohu o te Ora o Ngāti Awa, along with Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Awa management and staff, arranged for hundreds of food and home essentials to be packaged and delivered to vulnerable whānau and kaumātua of Ngāti Awa hapū, including those on Mōtītī island near Tauranga. Over 250 kaumātua over 65 were supported, along with vulnerable tamariki and those with chronic conditions, all of whom were the most at risk from Covid-19. While continuing to respond to these events and their aftermath, at the same time we have had to continue with project development work. The principal ones are:
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• Korehāhā Whakahau – a major pest eradication plan, starting with possums, across a 4,700ha area covering Whakatāne and Ōhōpe, benefitting biodiversity and boosting regional development and tourism. Funded by Ngāti Awa, Predator-free 2050, a Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) grant and Te Papa Atawhai / Department of Conservation, and launched in June. It is the first Iwi-led Predator-Free 2050 project in Aotearoa. It is an example of what we hope will be many projects to protect and enhance our taiao, and reinstate our connections to our whenua. • Kāinga – the transformation of the Whakatāne Army Hall that will celebrate Ngāti Awa culture, heritage and stories. With equity support from the PGF, this will be a destination anchor in the Whakatāne township, and will help us provide manaakitanga to visitors and residents. Kāinga will also reflect our taiao aspirations be sustainable and align with our values. • Led by Te Rāhui Lands Trust, a potential new boat harbour adjacent to the Whakatāne river on Ngāti Awa owned Māori freehold land, funded by a PGF loan and equity. This will include a training facility for the Eastern Bay of Plenty. • Te Ara Mahi – a workforce development and training programme delivered by Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Awa with partners to support the boat harbour development, our businesses, and most importantly descendants of Ngāti Awa into training and employment. • Town and riverside regeneration in Whakatāne (Te Ara Hou) – led by the District Council, with our support, a range of work is underway to repurpose and beautify the town centre and riverside, with new walkways and mixed use spaces. • Tourism Reset – alongside Ngāti Awa Group Holdings Limited we are jointly working on refreshing and repurposing our tourism offerings. Guided by our values, we are seeking to create a Ngāti Awa eco-system of suppliers and service providers where the value we create is first distributed to Ngāti Awa businesses and employees. The boat harbour and river revitalisation projects are expected to create 450 jobs, direct and indirect, over 10 years and for Kāinga to create another 150-200 jobs. More broadly, through job seeking and training support we hope to match our people to the many new training and job seeker support schemes the Crown has set up to respond to Covid-19, and also to see what we can deliver ourselves. This is part of our wider workforce development plan that links in with Korehāhā Whakahau, our tourism reset, and other projects.
TE RŪNANGA O NGĀTI AWA | 2020 ANNUAL REPORT
