July 04, 2024
Potaka pursues strategic funding for reo entities
Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka says he’s pushing for more funding for Whakaata Māori and other Māori language entities.
Whakaata Maori chief executive Shane Taurima has told staff there will need to be organisational changes at the television service because there’s no guarantee of extra money once the supplemental allocation from Labour runs out.
Mr Potaka says over the past 50 years there has been considerable crown support for te reo Maori through the transfer of broadcasting assets and spectrum, tautoko for kohanga reo, kura kuapapa, and wananga, and Maori language lessons in both public and private sectors.
Budget 2024 included $142 million for promotion of the Māori language and culture through Whakaata Māori, broadcast funding agency Te Māngai Pāho, language revitalisation entity Te Mātāwai and Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori the Māori language commission.
“My role as the Minister for Maori Development is absolutely to promote te reo Maori me ona tikanga and ensure the relevant resources are available and I will be advocating for quite strategic tautoki for Whakaara Maori and other entities,” he says.
Minister Potaka says Whakaata Māori’s current concerns are over the expiry of some limited time funding for specific projects, but it still gets baseline funding.