Budget 2023 Tertiary funding for Mātauranga Māori provision

Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi Chief Executive, Professor Wiremu Doherty, welcomes the news in the recent Government Budget announcement that there will be a phased increase of 15 percent for Level 3 and above Mātauranga Māori provision (including te reo Māori), phased in over four years.

“It’s encouraging to see this latest funding announcement recognises the importance of Mātauranga Māori across the education sector,” says Professor Doherty.

“However, we also need to recognise that Mātauranga Māori is more than this – the resurgence of Mātauranga Māori, and Aotearoa’s support of it, is a critical component in establishing the equality of Māori intellectual tradition alongside the knowledge base of others.

“Mātauranga Māori has a critical role to play in helping establish long-term solutions to several challenges faced by Aotearoa – be it health, socio-economic, environmental, and more.

“Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, as a wānanga, plays a distinctive and crucial role in tertiary education, providing an opportunity for our tauira to learn based on the values of āhuatanga Māori according to tikanga Māori. We are also only the only wānanga that delivers programmes from foundation studies through to Doctorates of Philosophy – and we do so with a firm Mātauranga Māori lens,” says Professor Doherty.

Professor Doherty also acknowledges the struggles the tertiary sector has faced in recent years following the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and falling EFTS numbers.

“We welcome the additional funds the Government is committing towards helping tertiary institutions like our Wānanga manage increases in programme delivery costs and boost equivalent full-time student numbers, while enabling us to maintaining quality in teaching and learning.

“Of course, accessibility to tertiary education is one of the major issues our communities face – we look forward to seeing the changes the Government’s additional funding will have in relation to helping address this critical, and incredibly complex, issue. More than this, we look forward to working with Government, to establish tangible solutions – from a Mātauranga Māori perspective – to some of the challenges our communities face.”

Pānui i roto i te reo Māori