More rangatahi to benefit from Youth Fund

Youth Minister Peeni Henare today announced the 31 successful projects that will receive a share of just over $182,000 to fund community projects led by young people, as part of Youth Fund 2018.

Youth Fund supports young people to get involved in projects that will develop valuable skills such as decision making, leadership and peer mentoring and at the same time boost self-confidence to make a positive contribution to their community.

This funding has been in place for nine years and is very significant to the Ministry as it is a youth-led initiative – by rangatahi, for rangatahi. The selection panel is made up of young people who assess the applications and make decisions on how the funding should be allocated.

The projects this year will see young people get involved in community focused projects, mentoring platforms, leadership programmes, and internships.

One particular project this year, Save and Help, will bring together a core group of ten young people who will buddy up with staff members and work alongside families in need from the community. This can include the young people cooking a meal for a family that is going through a tough time, helping an elderly person stack firewood, or simply painting a community fence. Up to 30 young people will be involved. This project will demonstrate how young people of today have such great community spirit and whanaungatanga.

“Another exciting project, Te Kopounga, will see rangatahi co-design a 12-week programme which will focus on media workshops, enterprise skills, work readiness, and cooking skills for young people Not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEET),” says Mr Henare.

“It is important that we invest in rangatahi, especially through projects that will allow young people to use their own initiative in making informed decisions and solving problems along the way.”

“To the successful recipients of the Youth Fund 2018, I wish you all the best,” says Mr Henare.

Details of the 31 successful projects can be found on MYD’s website.

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