Achieving our Legacy

Can we make ‘em proud?

Ministers Parekura Horomia, and Jim Sutton, the organising committee, Nick Roskruge, Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, it's great for me to be here today at Te Ohu Whenua, to speak to you in my capacity as the Associate Minister of Industry and Regional Development.

I was thinking, when drafting this speech, what it was that I would open with.

I came up with some great stories about cows, about sheep and jokes about those who work in government.

But, what I kept coming back to was a question thanks to a trip I took a few months ago.

Let me recount something to you.

I sat on a plane for nearly 24 hours all up with a group of returned servicemen who travelled to Italy to commemorate the battle of Monte Cassino.

There were about 70 of us all together, and amongst us were a contingent from the 28th Maori Battalion.
It was a proud moment for me to watch these great heroes’s of our past, striding forward, though with more frailty, but still carrying the mana and expectation of a generation of New Zealanders.

It has been sixty years since many of them had been to Monte Cassino, I can only imagine what greeted them when they were first here, but for now, it is a serene place.

Just standing there, looking at the rock the Abbey sits on, stirred latent emotions in my heart.

I was never more humbled than in the days I spent with these old soldiers, listening to their stories and listening to the reasons for why they fought.

Spending time with them, gave me an appreciation of what they believed they were fighting for.

It was more about independence and freedom, it was more helping in the birth of a new nation, it was more about fighting to protect our rights as Maori and New Zealanders to live to our potential, more than it was ever just about “King and Country”.

They fought for a country that had yet to grow up.

We welcome them home with open arms these days, like we did when they first came home nearly sixty years ago.

We were proud of them then, and, we are proud of them now in our growing appreciation of the sacrifice they made for the dream they had for our future.

What we have learnt that makes us proud now, is their foresight; they were able to take just the smallest glimpse of our potential.

They also saw a New Zealand that was very different then.

They saw a New Zealand where the times were changing, the tide was going out, washing away the old and leaving behind the new to grow and prosper and they wanted us to be part of that.

Ka pari te tai moana, ka timu te tai tangata, as the tide of the ocean flows, the tide of man recedes, and they were witness to a time when the landscape left behind was ready for us to grow and prosper upon.

Many of these soldiers had been born in a time when there were few roads, no railway on the East Coast, goods brought in were expensive and it was hard to get farm produce out of the region.

Before the soldiers went to war, they had seen a time when Apriana Ngata saw the value of land and encouraged the Maori tribes to cultivate and produce from their land.

In 1905, the government passed laws to make it easier for non-Maori to buy Maori land, one of many Acts over the years that made it difficult for us to progress.

The soldiers believed that their participation in the world wars was about proving their value and their rights as caretakers of the land, which they did.

Before World War I, Pomare said "if ever this country was threatened, we would stand side by side with you to the last man and woman – stand in defence of the country where it has been our happy lot to commingle man to man".

It was a fight in itself to be counted, but we got there.

In the decision to join the fighting of World War II, there was a firm belief in the proof of their metal, that they were equal citizens in this country.

Apirana Ngata's vision of democracy transcended race.

After the war years, the prime concern of Sir Apirana Ngata was that our returned servicemen would be sufficiently rehabilitated.

Ngata argued that providing housing and settling Maori ex-servicemen on the land and in light of the lack of Crown land to do this, advocated for the use of Maori owned land.

The provision of homes, with the supporting economy of farms, was the very foundation of land settlement.

After the enactment of the Maori Social and Economic Advancement Act in 1945, giving power to tribal and executive committees to promote social and economic advancement of Maori people, and the return of our soldiers, there was an opportunity.

Walter Nash at that time noted, "it is not for you to be the same as we are, but for you to be as you could and would be".

This was a time to witness the new.

But, what is the new?

The "new" Ngata saw was a way of living, a way of being, an opportunity for self-determination in an age of dynamic change.

He saw a bright future for these old boys from the Maori Battalion, for young Maori and for the generations of Maori to follow in their footsteps, each taking their own personal steps.

And then, we were left a legacy, a legacy shaped in the form of a question.

The question they left was can we make them proud, can we take the opportunity they gave us to be successful people in the modern world.

Let me start by answering part of this question.

New Zealanders are by nature achievers and in some cases, we are classic over achievers with that Arthur Lidiard mentality about never being satisfied with our success.

New Zealanders are achievers in sport, we have had some of the greatest sports people in history, Wilson Whineray, George Nepia, and Leilani Joyce as examples, and you may forgive me if I also nominate the East Coast Rugby Team but that’s debatable.

New Zealanders are some of the most influential people, Sir Apirana Ngata, Maui Pomare, Whina Cooper, Whitu Tirikatene, and Mason Durie.

New Zealanders have some of the most respected creative people in the world, such as Whiti Ihimaira, Lee Tamihore and Moana Maniapoto.

And, New Zealanders are achievers in business, such as Whale Watch, Whakatu and the increasingly successful Poutama Trust.

Where business is concerned, Maori entrepreneurship is recognised around the world.

A report was released in March this year called the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor or GEM report.

The GEM report showed that if Maori were a sovereign nation, we would be the fourth most entrepreneurial nation in the world.

Maori beat non-Maori in total start up business activity in 2003 with 17.1% starting a business compared with 13.3% of non-Maori.

We are risk takers, we are business minded, and we are traders of commodities.

Maori have historically been recognised as the drivers of economic activity in this country, Maori were dominant in trade and enterprise before the implications of the Treaty of Waitangi would be felt.

Many of you will be aware that Maori had established significant trading and business networks in Pounamu between tribes of the North and South.

You will also be aware that Maori established a huge flax trading industry within New Zealand and to Australia that was so successful, Maori had the equivalent of the corporate might of giants like Fonterra.

A new way forward

So we know we have the talent, across the board, to achieve huge potential success.

As a nation through the 1980's and 1990's, we were sluggish and so when this government came to power in 1999, we set about to change the way we worked.

In the past, we have always thought about economic growth in a national frame of mind, we have thought about New Zealand as a whole.

From 1984 until 1999 successive New Zealand governments pursued a programme of economic reform, this reform aimed at reducing the level of government involvement in the economy.

Markets were deregulated to enhance competition and efficiency.

Assets were privatised, a large budget deficit was closed and net public debt was halved.

But, this focus was one that ignored the needs in our regions and a change in the focus of the Ministry of Maori Affairs meant that Maori were largely ignored too, sent back to the dark ages.

What happened through the 1990’s, was a total reversal of what we value as New Zealanders, and the value we have in ensuring that New Zealanders can all share in the wealth our country produces.

Accordingly, we had to do some soul searching and leave the naval gazing behind.

We knew when we came to government in 1999 that out in the regions, government services weren’t well coordinated, we knew there was duplication of services, and services were being delivered inefficiently.

We had to ask ourselves some hard questions, why were there regions in New Zealand experiencing tough times?

We had that value of ensuring that all New Zealanders could share in the wealth being created

So, we made it our goal, every New Zealander, through our efforts in economic development, would share and prosper too.

Having identified our goal of us all sharing and prospering, we then looked at what would drag New Zealand out of its complacency.

We needed to shift our focus from the making of money and economic growth from being national, to being regional.

How do we enable regions to do well, why even focus on regions?

We knew that to do well in our regions it was about finding the keys to growth through our regions, so that they could contribute to the nation.

Some regions, told us back in the late 1990's they would fold if we didn’t repair the damage that had been caused by a decade of neglect.

So, we asked the regions to tell us what they needed to do better, what assets they had in order to help grow, and what they had to do better.

We put in place a framework, or a web of support if you like.

We put this web in place to help to meet their needs based on what they had told us.

The web is made up of a number of government programmes that support regions in growth process.

This means that we have strengthened mentoring programmes to small business in Te Puni Kokiri, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, the Ministry of Social Development, and the Community Employment Group.

We have taken innovative approaches and been more flexible where the employment of our people is concerned

Through programmes such as Jobs Jolt and innovative regional employment initiatives partnering with business we can train people with the skills they need to enter valuable careers.
Other government programmes have also been implemented that have taken an open mind to funding regionally focussed economic development initiatives.

We have searched for initiatives that have focussed squarely on making the most of the assets in the regions.

One specific example is the Regional Partnerships Programme implemented in 2000.

This initiative was put in place to specifically address the issues that we had, the duplicity, the ineffective delivery, the national economic way of thinking.

This new approach was a major shift in policy and an entirely new way of thinking.

It was a way of thinking we had never tried, but it's working.

We now have decision makers in the regions telling us what they need, what they are going to do and how they are going to do it.

We now have regions that were once in danger of falling over, now raging ahead with positive growth.

New Zealand’s economy overall grew 2.3 percent in the March 2004 quarter thanks to surging activity across several industries.

The economy grew by 3.6 percent to the March 2004 year continuing the trend of the past three years.

That makes this one of the best times in New Zealand over the past 25 years in terms of sustained growth and one of the best in the OECD since 2001.

In our regions, Northland as an example, has now experienced growth consistently for two years with economic activity recording an increase of 3.4% to September 2003.

Northland now has a regional development agency - Enterprise Northland - that is a benchmark of success.

There is record low regional unemployment at 4.0% there too.

In Northland we now have an invigorated region and a region that now has a bright future.

The information coming in from other regions tells us this is happening across the board.

The New Zealand economy as a whole has enjoyed strong growth in the last two years of around 4 percent per year.
The key driver of this high growth has been domestic demand, partially offset by weakness in exports.

But this is due to the expansion of our regions, and this growth is brought about by greater productivity, your businesses are working.

The rapid expansion in the economy has led to high job growth, the unemployment rate is down to a 16-year low of 4.3 percent.

The regions of Northland, Waikato, Taranaki, Southland and Manawatu-Wanganui had the largest improvement in labour market conditions during the September 2003 year.

The regions, with your assistance, have advanced onward and upward.

We see our regions successfully implementing strategies that take advantage of what assets they have.

People in the regions are talking more.

Planning in the regions is more integrated and more developed.

My example of Northland, was the first region to implement a Major Regional Initiative that focussed on developing the capability of small business through the tourism sector.

But, more than this, there are strategies in place now to assist the forestry sector in Northland to deliver product to a more targeted market and they are looking for ways to expand.

The marine construction sector is on the up with infrastructure developed to support its growth.

Marlborough has developed one major regional initiative already, and is in the throws of implementing a second based on aircraft restoration.

Its neighbour, Nelson, is developing a world centre of excellence for the fishing industry.

All this is happening in partnership and cooperation.

Where regions once competed with each other, they are now working together, sharing knowledge and skill with each other and creating networks that will only assist with their own growth.

We are part of this; Maori are a key stakeholder in this growth.

What do we know already?

Maori business in New Zealand, and its contribution to the health of our regional and national economies, is underrated.

What do we know about Maori success in business already?

Last year, Te Puni Kokiri released Te Ohanga Whanaketanga Maori and what we learnt from that were these facts.

We know that the New Zealand economy benefits from the positive contribution of the Maori economy, Maori business in general.

Maori production amounts to $1.9 billion per year and the Maori economy, if it were a company would be running a surplus of around $830million, that’s better than the national economy.

We know that Maori-owned commercial assets produce more export value, at $650 million, than the wine, wool, kiwifruit or fisheries industries.

Maori homes and businesses pay $2.4 billion in taxes.

Maori homes also earn $4.3 billion in wages and salaries each year.

The total commercial assets owned by Maori are estimated to be worth around $9 billion in 2001 and this is a conservative estimate.

50% of all Maori commercial assets are estimated to be invested in your sectors, the primary industries such as agriculture, aquaculture and mining, and 40% are in tertiary industries such as wholesale, retail trade, the hospitality industry, and so on.

So we know we can achieve great things in business and commerce.

In the regions, your contribution through the primary sectors, is the key to ongoing, sustainable economic health.

Your presence here today is testament to your understanding of the role that you play in how well your regions and your country are doing.

We are good at business, but you know what, we can be even better.

This is a platform for us to accelerate our own growth and to realise our potential.

There are always going to be places in which we, Maori, can improve and our enormous strides since the old boys came home is evidence of our determination to do it.

In passing of the mantle from the soldiers of the 28th Maori battalion, we have had to search for new leaders, Ka to he ra, ka rere he ra, as the sun sets, a new day begins.

One of the most crucial elements of our success has been the leadership and guidance we have been blessed with.

As times pass, our search for this leadership continues, our need for this leadership will never change, and we have emerging Maori business people who will be ready to take up the challenge.

We need to support this leadership, embrace it, value it and be influenced by it.
As a nation, Maori, we are people who above all else, value leadership and we need to continue to allow this to bring us to the forefront of economic development.

Te Ohanga Whanaketanga Maori identified a number of other key areas for improvement.

These included greater focus on leadership that moulds attitudes and behaviour that mix well with Maori aspirations for higher living standards.

There was a recommendation that Maori needed to work hard to form relationships with banks and financial institutions.

We need financial institutions to work with Maori organisations to set up a Maori financial institution to manage risks relevant to the Maori economy.

One of the key features of focus for improvement is we need to make better use of our assets, mainly the use of our multiply owned land.

We know that Maori possess large blocks of under-utilised land in New Zealand, we also know that these blocks are uneconomic, they don’t make money.

Under the Regional Partnership Programme, across 26 regions, Eastern Bay of Plenty, Tai Tokerau and Tairawhiti have developed regional strategies for economic growth.

These three regions are where the largest proportion of under-utilised land is held.

So what issues do these regions face and are there solutions?

There are solutions and we are working hard, in partnership with some of you, to come up with a framework within which you can work to develop further.

These strategies for growth are strategies we can embrace and use to our full advantage.

Government has offered strategies for growth, the Growth and Innovation Framework, the Regional Partnerships Programme, the mechanics and processes of government itself.

But, we also know there are some barriers and these are what we need to work through.

Infrastructure, skilled labour shortages, mentoring services to business people, and leadership are all key areas of focus.

Barriers and Solutions

Infrastructure

Barriers to land utilisation for Maori have been identified as being linked to regional infrastructure and transportation.

Maori land in most cases is within isolated rural and coastal areas with insufficient roading and telecommunications, amongst other things.

In recent months, this government invested $19 billion over the next ten years into infrastructure development.

Yes, a lot of that is going to Auckland.

But, a lot of it is going where it is needed outside of Auckland too.

Gisbourne and the Hawke’s Bay will receive an extra $70 million and we will focus on maintaining the roading network to cope with current and expected demand.

Northland is being allocated $59.4 million to assist road improvement with $39.75 million of this going directly to maintenance of roads there.

In total, Transfund will receive $1.42 billion this year alone to spend on our roads across the country and of this $666 million will be spent directly on maintenance.

What we all need to do though is to work in partnership with Transfund, local government, business, iwi and the community to identify projects of utmost importance.

Skilled Labour

Another issue for the utilisation of Maori land is that the primary sectors, have gone through some difficulties in attracting and retaining skilled people.

The real push for us has been in trying to promote the sector as a viable career choice for young people.

Skilled labour shortages and the need to build on that skill base has been a barrier to further progressing the sector.

We are putting in place schemes to attract our young talent and providing them with the skills that you will need them to have when they come to work with you.

Mentoring

Mentoring is a tool we can employ to extract experience and expertise from people - people who have been through the process of development planning, and putting those plans in place.

Mentoring provides much needed leadership and direction to achieving this goal or objective.

And, many of you here, fit the bill for the type of people we need as leaders and mentors in the sector.

A number of government agencies have put in place programmes for this to happen including Te Puni Kokiri, Enterprise Training provided by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, and the Community Employment Group.

The types of mentoring services that are available include assisting Maori landowners to identify viable commercial leases and land use options, the provision of information for land use, developing strategies for more effective land use, and developing joint ventures.

Information

There has also been a lot of work done in providing quality information for land use.

This work resulted in the Maori Land Use National Resource Kit released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Te Puni Kokiri, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Maori Land Development Trust and the Community Employment Group.

Access to information has been and is continually being improved which targets Maori landowners and primary sector business people.

More Organisation

Cluster groups are being established in regions to organise the sector.

Relationship building has been undertaken to ensure that linkages are being made between the knowledge people, the action people and the funding groups to assist the process of development.

Strategies are being or have been developed to provide the necessary steps to achieving goals of development and use of our primary resources.

Regional Strategies

The regional strategies, being developed and implemented under the Regional Partnerships Programme, have identified a number of tools through which we can accelerate Maori economic development.

Where the primary sector is concerned, a large volume of work is underway to ensure that we make the greatest possible advantage of our resources and again, this includes land utilisation.

Within Tairawhiti there is work to promote horticulture as a career, and there is investment into better management practices to improve horticultural returns.

In Taitokerau, ongoing work is underway to coordinate sectors in the region being led by Enterprise Northland to try and provide leadership within the sector.

The Forestry Reference Group has been established to try and lead the interests of this sector in economic development.

But, crucial for Maori in this sector, important linkages are being developed between the regional polytechnics, industry, and training providers to equip our young people with the skills to enter the sector and to make a career out of it.

So, we are putting the tools in place.

While you are here this week, I hope that you will take the opportunity to consider how best to use these resources, our land, our people and our knowledge.

Maori have done well, we know this, we have seen the results and we know the impact of the initiative we have taken, so is there more we can do?

The short answer, yes there is.

What to do to get better

Maori have achieved in making use of their assets so far and Maori are already successful in their own right, but there is a whole lot more we can do to live up to the potential the old soldiers showed us we have, and the expectations of our past leaders.

Maori are as we could and would be.

I believe that we have taken the mantle of Ngata, Pomare and the 28th Maori Battalion and we are wearing it well.

There is work for us yet and I still have a greater vision for us.

Let me say what my vision for Maori is.

My vision for Maori is this, I want to see Maori business people becoming the best in their field, I want to see Maori business people who aren’t afraid to make money, I want to see Maori business people with the capability to grow their business, I want to see Maori business people who can fulfil the hopes and dreams of those old boys from the Maori Battalion living up to what they fought for, and realising the potential Ngata knew we had.

I say that Maori are special, we are the tangatawhenua, this is our home but it is also time we stood up to be counted.

Maori have achieved so much success in the last 60 years so the time has come to look back at where we have come from, take stock of our achievements and mark our way on the continual strive to move forward.

We should not accept that where we are is good enough!

What I am saying is that we are good at what we do, we are a success already, but lets build on that, lets strengthen the road for ourselves to succeed in greater endeavours.

We have driven the bus for too long and it is time we started owning these buses!

I want to see Maori owning their own businesses in greater numbers, using their assets even more effectively, employing more staff, making more money for their family and their community, and even more Maori business people who are an active part of the growing networks and value chains of their region.

We can’t sit back to enjoy our success just yet we have to build on and make more of the opportunities we have, the resources we are offered, to make hay while the sun shines.

We need to be more active players in the partnerships that are being established in the regions between the agencies, communities, and local government and business.

We need to acknowledge our own huge strides and put in place even better strategies to utilise the further potential we have and begin to exercise our economic prowess to even greater benefit!

That you are here this week is testament to your desire to create linkages, become players in the sector and to increase your economic power and I congratulate you for that.

We are well on the way to making the old boys from the 28th Maori Battalion proud of us for living up their expectation of success.

We are well on the way, but we are not there yet and the hardest work is yet to begin, but we, Maori, are up to the task.

Forums like Te Ohu Whenua, Hui Taumata and the Regional Development Conference are a meaningful way of identifying what the impediments are to our growth and the ways we need to deal with them.

I would like to wish you well in your time here this week, I want to wish you the greatest success in your business, and I hope that in a year’s time when we are back here to look at our progress again, we have taken more steps to our own prosperity and that of our people.

He Tuke mata ano to te taonga, fortune favours the brave. The old boys knew that, Ngata knew that, and now its your turn, it’s a different battle, but no less important.

Its exciting to be part of this dynamic time, the challenge is with you.

END.