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February 28, 2023
Census extended to capture Māori data
Claudette Hauiti
Posted On February 28, 2023
Download AudioThe Census has been extended by eight weeks to ensure areas affected by Cyclone Gabrielle can be properly counted.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says Census 2023 will go ahead as planned next Tuesday in most of the country.
But in Te Matau-ā-Maui Hawkes Bay, Te Tai Rawhiti and Te Tai Tokerau Northland people will be able to complete their forms between 6 April and 1 June.
He says 2,500 kaimahi will remain in the affected areas to manaaki whānau and assist in the completion of the census so there is no repeat of 2018 when there was a significant under-count of Maori and Pasifika.
“The areas most affected by the cyclone, include the Hawkes Bay, Northland and Te Tai Rawhiti, are among the communities that were underserved by the 2018 census. That makes the data collection in 2023 all the more important, and that’swhy we’ve deciddd to extend the time period for those regions,” Mr Hipkins says.
Mana Raraunga, Māori Data Sovereignty Network, estimates the Māori under-count in 2018 could have been as mcuh as 20 percent.
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