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February 27, 2026
#waiariki: Rawiri Waititi: No Shift in Child Poverty as SH35 Reopens and Mataatua Gathers in Strength
Dale Husband
Posted On February 27, 2026
Download AudioNewly released child poverty statistics show no improvement over the past year, with tamariki Māori, Pacific children and disabled children continuing to experience severe material hardship at disproportionately high rates.
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi says the latest figures confirm what many whānau already know – too many children remain locked in conditions that limit opportunity, health and wellbeing. With one in seven children living in material hardship nationally, Māori communities continue to be overrepresented across every key measure.
The data shows no annual improvement, raising fresh concerns about whether current policy settings are capable of shifting entrenched inequities. Waititi argues that persistent disparities for tamariki Māori reflect long-standing structural failures, including income inequality, housing shortages, insecure employment and underinvestment in kaupapa Māori solutions.
He says the continued overrepresentation of Māori and Pacific children in poverty statistics is not accidental, but the predictable outcome of systems that have not been redesigned to deliver equitable outcomes. Disabled children, too, remain at higher risk of hardship, with families facing additional costs and inconsistent support.
At the same time, communities along the East Coast are marking a significant milestone with State Highway 35 reopening following recent weather disruptions. The highway is a critical lifeline for many rural Māori communities, connecting whānau to employment, schooling, health services and supply chains.
Waititi says the reopening of SH35 is more than a transport update – it represents the ongoing resilience of coastal communities who repeatedly endure isolation following severe weather events. He points to the fragility of regional infrastructure and the disproportionate impact that closures have on Māori electorates, particularly in areas where alternative routes are limited or non-existent.
Yet even amid economic strain and infrastructure challenges, the region is preparing to host the Mataatua regional kapa haka competition. For Waititi, the gathering is a visible demonstration of intergenerational resilience.
He says kapa haka is not simply performance; it is language revitalisation, whakapapa, identity and collective strength expressed on stage. While poverty statistics speak to hardship, kapa haka speaks to endurance. Whānau may face financial pressure, but they continue to invest time, energy and pride into sustaining culture.
The convergence of these events – stagnant poverty data, the reopening of a vital highway, and the celebration of kapa haka – highlights the dual reality facing many Māori communities. Material hardship persists, yet cultural strength remains unbroken.
Waititi maintains that true resilience should not be used to excuse inaction. Cultural endurance does not remove the obligation on government to address child poverty at its roots. He says the challenge now is ensuring that the same collective will seen on the kapa haka stage is matched by structural change in Wellington.
As tamariki take to the stage in Mataatua and whānau reconnect along SH35, the message is clear: Māori communities continue to stand strong. The question remains whether policy settings will evolve quickly enough to ensure that strength is matched by improved living conditions for the next generation.
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