Jenny Salesa
Wellington, April 10, 2024
One of the best things about my role is celebrating cultural festivals alongside many of our ethnic communities who enrich New Zealand with their own unique identities.
I think back to the vibrant moments that I have shared at Diwali, New Zealand Eid Day and most recently the Auckland Lantern Festival.
All of these are now at risk as the Ministry for Ethnic Communities looks at cutting its permanent staff by 14%, which includes its regional offices in Hamilton, New Plymouth, Napier and Dunedin.
About the Ethnic Communities Ministry
Founded in July 2021, the Ministry for Ethnic Communities was established following nearly three decades of persistent advocacy by numerous community leaders throughout Aotearoa New Zealand.
Additionally, the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Christchurch terrorist attacks on March 15 endorsed the establishment of this Ministry, positioning it as the chief advisor to the New Zealand government on ethnic communities.
The purpose of the Ministry is to guide Aotearoa New Zealand towards becoming a truly inclusive nation where individuals can participate and engage fully without fear of discrimination, racism or bias, and where all can freely express their culture and identity.
The Ministry offers advice, information, and services to ethnic communities and allocates resources to enhance and support social cohesion and community development.
Although the Ministry for Ethnic Communities is reasonably new, it has already achieved a number of positive outcomes. To list a few things: an increase of ethnic representation on public sector boards and committees; increased inclusiveness and participation in the 2023 Census; and supporting the response to extreme weather events – amongst many other initiatives.
Ethnic Communities make up 1.1 million (around 20%) of our total population in Aotearoa New Zealand. By 2033, as the fastest-growing demographic, they are projected to comprise 25% of New Zealand’s total population. Also, in our largest city, one in three Aucklanders are from ethnic communities and they are crucial to the future of our country’s economy as well as our cultural diversity.
Cultural Diversity
New Zealand is known for its cultural diversity. The Ethnic Communities Development Fund administered by the Ministry supports cultural diversity by investing in cultural festivals, arts and heritage projects that celebrate ethnic communities’ traditions and their contributions in Aotearoa such as Diwali, Holi and the Lantern Festival.
Given this backdrop, it is heartbreaking that the Minister for Ethnic Communities is not advocating for, and fighting hard to ensure that, the Ministry does not suffer, particularly under the huge cuts that are currently being proposed.
Under this National-led government, Ministries and government departments are currently facing cuts of either 6.5% or 7.5%. So why is it that the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, which is less than three years old, is facing a 14% cut in staff – well above the cuts expected from larger, mainstream and more established government organisations?
One of the parties in this Coalition Government, the ACT Party, has been widely reported as having a policy to abolish all population Ministries, including the Ministry for Ethnic Communities. With such significant staff cuts, one must question whether this is, in fact, a step towards abolishing the Ministry entirely.
Migrants’ wellbeing
The Labour Party and I are strongly committed to the wellbeing of our migrants, refugees and ethnic communities. They make important contributions for the betterment of our country and now is the time to invest more in our people, not to take away from what little they have.
As this government erodes the progress we made, I remain committed to advocating for better funding and support for the Ministry and all the communities it serves.
My appeal to our Indian and all ethnic community leaders is this – we need your strong advocacy to ensure that the Ministry we have established together remains and is resourced appropriately so that it continues to grow stronger and continues the important work on all our behalf.
Jenny Salesa is the elected Member of Parliament from Panmure-Otahuhu Constituency in Auckland and a former Minister of the Crown. She was the Minister of Ethnic Communities from 2017 to 2020.
