Hapū at the heart of port redevelopment

Date Created: September 6, 2021

Te Pūwaha is the name of the Whanganui port revitalisation project which aims to create a sustainable marine precinct committed to positive outcomes for our Awa and people.

In the past year, hapū have collectivised as Te Mata Pūau and taken on a central leadership role in the delivery of Te Pūwaha Project. Through this leadership, the project has successfully reconfigured its structures so that the hapū are central to all decision­making processes.

It has been a continuous process to help the Project partners understand Te Awa Tupua status and the application of Tupua Te Kawa towards the health and well-being of the Whanganui River in its entirety.

Te Mata Pūau member Raukura Waitai said it has been a big learning curve for everyone involved.

"I have found it really awesome helping organisations understand Tupua Te Kawa within the day-to-day parameters of this project. This has required leading non-iwi agencies and the community along a journey to work in line with the values of Te Awa Tupua," she said.

There are multiple project partners involved, including local and central government, who are now working in collaboration through Tupua Te Kawa.

Raukura said non-lwi agencies cannot continue to work the way they always have, and Tupua Te Kawa provides that overarching set of values to improve how they work with us.

"We have put the health and well-being of the River and the wider community at the forefront and constructing a project together in this way ensures a better outcome for everyone."

Hapū saw the need to define success by ensuring that the outcomes of this project can be measured by Mouri Ora, Mouri Awa, Mouri Tangata, Raukura said.

"That is an inclusive proposition, and I am really proud of that."

She said the way the project is set up now sees hapū oversight and involvement at all levels of governance and operations.

"This allows us to see things that others may not see. It has been great that Ngā Tāngata Tiaki has been able to facilitate hapū at place being key to this project."