September 15, 2017
Value for Maori part of Whanau Ora test
Te Putahitanga o Te Waipounamu head Helen Leahy says measuring the social impact of Whanau Ora is as important as measuring its economic impact.
The South Island commissioning agency this week unveiled research from wellbeing economics expert Professor Paul Dalziel and Dr Catherine Savage of Ihi Research which measured not just return on investment but also less tangible values like increases in whanaungatanga and social connection.
Ms Leahy says Whanau Ora has had extensive reviews and audits since it started seven years ago, but Te Putahitanga thought it important to create its own narrative.
"When we’re into the marketplace of the Treasury and the Social Investment Unit and those core state sector agencies looking for value for money, we wanted to see value for Maori as being part of that conversation," she says.
Ms Leahy says it’s fitting the research came out around the 10th anniversary of the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, as Whanau Ora offers a path towards self determination at the whanau and iwi level.
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