Strengthening our Māori–Crown capability
Grounded in the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi/ Te Tiriti o Waitangi, to support Māori–Crown relations, we aim to proactively listen to and recognise the needs of iwi and Māori, and to support their economic, employment and business aspirations.
On this page
MBIE has around 70 ongoing relationships resulting from Treaty settlements (these include Crown mineral protocols, accords, relationship agreements and others). These serve as a focus for
- deepening MBIE’s network of relationships with Māori and Māori entities
- investing in initiatives across the country that support Māori economic aspirations
- building our internal Māori capability and applying Treaty/Te Tiriti guidance across our work and programmes.
Whāinga Amorangi
Whāinga Amorangi is MBIE’s plan to strengthen Māori–Crown relations by building internal capability, growing our understanding of why the Māori–Crown relationship is important and how to reflect this in our everyday work.
We recognise that our people are at various stages of their journey and will require differing levels of support to build their capability in Māori–Crown relations. Whāinga Amorangi supports MBIE to meet its Māori–Crown responsibilities under the Public Service Act 2020.
Whāinga Amorangi includes 4 capability areas:
- te reo Māori
- te Tiriti o Waitangi/the Treaty of Waitangi and Aotearoa New Zealand history
- tikanga/customs and kawa/protocols
- engagement with Māori.
Te Ara Reo Rangatira
Our te reo Māori competency area is supported by Te Ara Reo Rangatira. This strategy sets out MBIE’s commitment to supporting the development and use of te reo Māori as a valued and living official language of Aotearoa New Zealand. Te Ara Reo Rangatira is part of our overarching Māori capability strategy, Whāinga Amorangi. The vision and purpose of ‘kia māhorahora te reo’ are that te reo Māori is used every day by everyone within MBIE. The strategy incorporates 3 phases:
- alignment to Whāinga Amorangi; building and strengthening Māori–Crown relations for all kaimahi
- weaving te reo into how MBIE operates internally and externally
- making sure we are doing the basics well, providing opportunities for te reo Māori to be learnt, shared and enjoyed.
Treaty Guidance for Policy
Policy, and associated legislation, is a core part of how the Crown governs. A lot of our work at MBIE is based on creating comprehensive and effective policies to support Aotearoa New Zealand. This is an important way that we support the Crown in its relationship with Māori under the Treaty of Waitangi/Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
The Treaty Guidance for Policy outlines the way we can incorporate the Treaty/Te Tiriti in our policy development. It has four steps: understanding the context, identifying what good looks like, developing options and delivery. MBIE uses its Treaty Guidance for Policy to support policy practitioners and programmes to have the capability and guidance to uphold responsibilities under the Treaty/Te Tiriti and the Public Service Act 2020. It is important we maintain consistent practices when we work with iwi, hapū or within te ao Māori, and the guidance helps people to understand and apply the Treaty/Te Tiriti in their policy development process.