Māori authorities have a future focus

Māori authorities have a future focus

30 June 2014

Nearly all commercial businesses owned by Māori authorities have a clear vision or mission statement, according to Tatauranga Umanga Māori 2014, a report released by Statistics New Zealand today.

“The fact that 96 percent of Māori authority businesses have a vision statement shows they’re approaching business quite differently from other commercial enterprises,” Tatauranga Umanga Māori manager Jason Attewell said. Only 58 percent of total New Zealand businesses report having a clear vision for the future.

The report also highlights the difference in geographical locations of Māori authorities. Almost half of Māori authorities are located in the Bay of Plenty and Waikato regions. “While 1 in 3 New Zealand businesses are based in Auckland, that figure drops to 1 in 20 for Māori authorities. We found that Māori authorities tend to be located in more rural areas, which reflects their predominantly land-based assets,” said Mr Attewell.

Māori authorities also tend to hold high proportions of fixed tangible assets, accounting for 49 percent of their total value, compared with 28 percent for total New Zealand businesses.

“Sustainability and providing for future generations are likely the drivers behind the physical-asset-based businesses we’re seeing in Māori authorities,” Mr Attewell said.

China was the leading destination for goods exported by Māori authorities. Goods exported to China were worth $274 million in the March 2014 year, up 67 percent from the previous year.

The report Tatauranga Umanga Māori 2014 is part of Tatauranga Umanga Māori, a multi-year research project that involves identifying Māori authorities and compiling statistics about them. The report includes a summary of such statistics – using existing data collections carried out by Statistics New Zealand.

While Tatauranga Umanga Māori 2014 concentrates on easily identifiable Māori authorities, Statistics NZ plans to eventually be able to identify all Māori businesses. The report illustrates the wealth of information available from official statistics if we can identify Māori businesses, and shows the contribution of these organisations to the New Zealand economy.

Read the report – Tatauranga Umanga Māori 2014: Statistics on Māori authorities.

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