March 04, 2024
Iwi partnership board looks for investment in north
The chief executive of the northern iwi Māori partnership board says the demise of Te Aka Whai Ora won’t stop the push for equitable investment in Māori health.
Boyd Broughton says the disestablishment of the Māori Health Authority set in motion in parliament last week represents a lost opportunity.
He says the fact the authority was a crown construct rather than an independent agency made it vulnerable to political whims.
Te Taumata Hauora Te Kahu o Taonui covers the largest Māori population of any of the iwi Māori partnership boards, and it will continue to work with hauora and whanau ora providers to deliver to its rohe from the Tamaki River north.
“One of our focuses is about getting equitable investment in the north, not just the health dollar but all the social wellbeings. What would be an equitable investment from the crown? Because it is painfully obvious when you get to the end of that motorway extension past Warkworth, the level of investment into the land, the housing, the people drops dramatically,” Mr Broughton says.