As mandated by Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, Te Tauraki is the Kāi Tahu entity with responsibility for the promotion of health and wellbeing aspirations within the takiwā of Kāi Tahu, amplifying the voice and needs of whānau Māori.
Te Tauraki operates as an Iwi Māori Partnership Board (IMPB) recognised under the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Act 2022.
As part of our IMPB function, we publish a Monitoring Report, which establishes a kaupapa Māori framework designed to drive meaningful health system transformation. It is grounded in values, community voice, and a full cycle of care, reflecting whakapapa, whenua, and wellbeing.
It applies Māori-centred methodologies across the complete health journey, from prevention to outcomes. It establishes clear baselines and indicators designed to surface disparities and support change.
Provisional Health Plan
Shaped by whānau Māori voice and hauora data from across the takiwā, we prepared a Provisional Health Plan for the Kāi Tahu takiwā. The plan identifies priorities, how we will amplify and monitor them so we can best influence change and equitable hauora outcomes for whānau Māori.
The plan outlines the focus and mahi of Te Tauraki IMPB over the three years 2024-2027.
Whānau voice
Understanding what is important to whānau Māori in the Kāi Tahu Takiwā helps us to advocate for improved health sector performance and better health outcomes. We agitate for a design and delivery of health services to have maximum benefit for whānau Māori.
As such, here is what we know about the hauora and wellbeing knoweldge and aspirations of whānau Māori in our takiwā:
- Hauora is a holistic concept
- Connection to te ao Māori is important
- Māori involvement in decision-making is essential
- Wellbeing is about more than health services
- Mātauranga Māori must be respected and valued
- Attention needs to be given to the needs and aspirations of tāngata whaikaha Māori
Connection to Te Ao Māori is important
Importance of being involved in Māori culture, Māori aged 15 years and over, Te Tauraki and Aotearoa, 2018
| Te Tauraki | Aotearoa | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | (95% CI) | % | (95% CI) | |
| Very important | 11.7 | (9.9, 13.5) | 22.1 | (21.2, 23.1) |
| Quite important | 21.0 | (18.5, 23.5) | 23.2 | (22.1, 24.3) |
| Somewhat | 27.1 | (24.0, 30.0) | 25.8 | (24.7, 26.9) |
| A little important | 26.0 | (22.5, 29.4) | 18.3 | (17.1, 19.5) |
| Not important at all | 14.3 | (11.6, 16.9) | 10.6 | (9.7, 11.6) |
Source: Te Kupenga 2018, Statistics New Zealand customised report.
Importance of spirituality, Māori aged 15 years and over, Te Tauraki and Aotearoa, 2018
| Te Tauraki | Aotearoa | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | (95% CI) | % | (95% CI) | |
| Very important | 19.8 | (17.1, 22.5) | 30.7 | (29.5, 31.9) |
| Quite important | 17.5 | (14.9, 20.1) | 18.0 | (16.9, 19.0) |
| Somewhat | 17.2 | (14.6, 19.8) | 16.8 | (15.9, 17.8) |
| A little important | 17.2 | (14.9, 19.5) | 15.3 | (14.3, 16.2) |
| Not important at all | 28.4 | (25.5, 31.2) | 19.2 | (18.1, 20.4) |
Source: Te Kupenga 2018, Statistics New Zealand customised report.
Māori involvement in decision-making is essential
"We need data sovereignty for Te Waipounamu. The data belongs to us and will allow us to hold the power and support whānau to make informed decisions."
- South Island participant, Hui Whakaoranga, 2021
One of the key findings of the Ministry of Health's Hui Whakaoranga in 2021 was that whānau Māori in Te Waipounamu want greater voice in decision-making at the local level. This includes decisions regarding:
- Health sector investments
- Commissioning of health services
- The services whānau Māori access, without becoming more reliant on health services
- Māori-led services
- The use of data and Māori data sovereignty principles.
Wellbeing is about more than health services
Whānau Māori within our takiwā have a broad understanding of hauora:
- Making nutritious food more affordable (Hui Whakaoranga 2021) and supporting food sovereignty, for example through māra kai (Takiwā Poutini 2023)
- Ensuring people are paid liveable wages (Hui Whakaoranga 2021)
- Providing healthy homes for whānau (Hui Whakaoranga 2021)
- Seamless connection across health and other government sectors (Takiwā Poutini 2023)
"The policy environment needs to change. We are living in a country that disenfranchises and perpetuates poverty."
- South Island participant, Hui Whakaoranga, 2021
"We need collaboration between all the organisations supporting Māori, health, social, etc. Join up all the care."
- Takiwā Poutini community engagement, 2023
Mātauranga Māori must be respected and valued
Whānau Māori in the Kāi Tahu takiwā have emphasised the need to see mātauranga in action, for example, through greater support for rongoā, widespread use of Te Reo Māori, and Māori-led and Iwi-driven approaches (Ngā Wānanga Pae Ora, 2023).
Whānau Māori have also spoken for the need for permanent spaces for Māori practices, including for wānanga (forums, workshops, learning environments) and mātauranga (Takiwā Poutini, 2023).
A growing body of Kaupapa Māori research emphasises the importance of Mātauranga Māori (Rewiti et al, 2023).
Attention needs to be given to the needs and aspirations of tāngata whaikaha Māori
According to the last New Zealand disability prevalence survey, 26 percent of Māori (compared with 24 percent of the general population) self-report disability. Due to a lack of clear definitions around disability that are meaningful for tāngata whaikaha Māori (Māori with lived experience of disability), existing data must be interpreted with caution.
There is, however, a growing body of tāngata whaikaha Māori-led research. This includes findings of a series of semi-structured interviews that involved a small number of tāngata whaikaha Māori who live in the Kāi Tahu takiwā or whakapapa to Kāi Tahu (Ingham et al, 2022). This study highlighted four areas of multidimensional nature and impacts of inequities for tāngata whaikaha Māori.
1. Inequitable access to the determinants of health and wellbeing
2. Inequitable access to and through health and disability care
3. Differential quality of health and disability care received
4. The need for Indigenous, Māori-led, solutions.
