May 26, 2014
Whai Rawa tops 19,000 savers
Ngai Tahu is celebrating the growth of its Whai Rawa savings scheme and rolling out some online tools to encourage sound financial management.
Programme manager Andrew Scott says Whai Rawa now has more than 19,000 members and a $35 million pool of savings and investments.
Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu covers most of the administration costs and backs the scheme with matched savings, annual distributions and newborn distributions.
Money can be withdrawn for education costs, home purchases or retirement once people reach 55.
The scheme is open to anyone in the tribe, and members are promoting it within their whanau, with more than two-thirds of Ngai Tahu under-16 year olds are now enrolled.
"One of the key things it does is get whanau to think about and plan for their future, and that relates to the whakatauki that fits with Whai Rawa, he ara whai rawa, mo Ngai Tahu whanui, so it’s about showing pathways that other whanau have taken and showing opportunities that are available and people can see that there are lots of different pathways," Mr Scott says.
The Whai Rawa website has been upgraded to include a calculator that shows individuals how an account can provide a putea for a better future, a tax rate calculator, more content to help plan for home ownership, education and retirement, and an online application to make it easier for whanau to sign up.
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