April 13, 2023
Liquorice allsorts approach needed to Census
Statistics NZ Māori director Te Atawhai Tibble says the department is facing an uphill battle to get Māori to participate in the census.
He says despite some changes after the disastrous 2018 census, which got a 68 percent return from Māori, the current collection is about 65 percent with less than two months to go.
The goal is nine out of 10 Māori filling in their forms, but that’s tough with the onset of winter making it harder for census workers to connect.
Mr Tibble says they’re constantly trying new approaches to reach Māori individually and collectively.
“Te Ao Māori in 2023, we are liquorice allsorts, we’re not just iwi or league whānau, we’re whānau members in gangs, we’re all of those things, we’re young, we’re old, we speak Māori, we don’t speak Māori, we go to the marae, we don’t go to the marae, so all of this is the challenge -how do we connect with our people better, and it’s not just knocking on the door,” he says.
Mr Tibble says StatsNZ has a set budget for the census – but it’s tried its very best to use every cent it can to reach Māori.