Speech: Whanau Ora, Tamariki Ora - the wellbeing of families and children

I am delighted to be here – and would have to admit that there is no greater theme than the one that inspires this conference.

And it is even more exciting to learn that the organisers of this forum were overwhelmed with registrations of interest in people who likewise, look on the wellbeing of families and children as our greatest responsibility as a nation.

I congratulate this forum – the Health Promotion forum of New Zealand – Te Runanga Whakapiki ake i te Hauora o Aotearoa – for the leadership, the vision and the momentum that you have inspired, not just in the 150 organisations that have joined up to the cause – but through your influence across the motu.

One could truly say, you are an organisation that has come of age.

If we were to look back over the history of this forum one would see the passion for health promotion, for upholding the five strands of the Ottawa Charter, as having developed alongside your commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

And I think of the late Dr Erihapeti Rehu-Murchie – your first chairperson – and the foundation that she helped to set for an organisation committed to partnership.


We must always remember those who create te aho tapu; literally the first row of weaving which sets the pattern and determines the outcome. If the first row is right, then the rest will follow.

In the years leading up to the establishment of the Health Promotion Forum, there was a critical point in our evolution as a country, in which a commitment to social justice and to community participation came together with a new era in upholding the promise of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

In 1981, the Hui Whakatauira, the Maori Leadership Conference, gave unanimous support for the promotion of a programme to take young Maori out of Social Welfare Institutions and to place them back with their tribal groups.

This ground-breaking policy, Maatua Whangai, was based around the notion of a tribal whariki – a human mat which weaves and connects individuals and families together into a strong and supportive system.

Traditionally this whariki had provided total care. In the latter part of last century, the mat had worn thin, and in some cases had disintegrated.

The call from the people was to seek to reweave and to restrengthen this whariki to provide once again, a supportive network and a foundation for development.

Now, a decade into a new century, can we say our time has come? Have we strengthened the whariki to ensure our families are restored to all that is the essence of who they are?

In this Health Promotion Forum annual symposium, the question will be posed to us all: what will make the difference in achieving whanau ora; tamariki ora?

At times it would seem that progress has been in incremental baby steps.

In the decades leading to Whanau Ora, we received Puao-te-ata-tu; He Tirohanga Rangapu; Te Urupare Rangapu; each of them promoting the concept of a practical opportunity for partnership with Maoridom; a proposal for sharing power and authority over resources.

This was followed in the health sector with He Korowai Oranga which was driven with one overall aim that Maori families will be supported to achieve their maximum health and wellbeing.

Little by little, strategy after strategy has reinforced the fundamental truth – that the greatest solutions lie within us.

I wanted to set out some of the history which has brought us here today, because it reminds us all that the concept of collective care and responsibility for our own is not new.

It reminds us that the connection between the outcomes for children and the outcomes for families is also well established.

And it reminds us that improving the wellbeing of children and families is part of a long-term journey in which none of us can afford to be dis-interested passengers.

I was talking with a friend recently about some photographs of our tupuna that have been retained in our whanau care. I remember asking my mother once, why were these photos so important.

She replied, ‘because that’s who we are’.

Every time we come upon the face of a new mokopuna, we make the connection to ourselves and those before us.

We search for the trademarks of our whakapapa – a gentle dimple in the chin, the wild sweep of the hair; the generous nose; the sparkle in the eye – and we say, aha, that’s us.

The wellbeing of families and children is all about making these connections, because that’s who we are.

But they are connections that span more than physical appearance.

One of the most precious moments we are offered with every newborn baby, is the chance to set things right, to pledge to that child that we will invest everything we have in their wellbeing – in whanau ora, in tamariki ora.

It might be in reviving the spirit of our ancestors who were entrepreneurs; explorers; and philosophers – carrying aspirations into the future which were based in their own cultural frameworks.

The wellbeing of families and children will also be shaped by the experiences and events which taught us resilience, determination and courage. We must reach back into our histories to keep hope alive; and to apply time-tested strategies into contemporary situations.

Our present and future must be driven by the stories and traditions which brought us to this point. The legacy of prior generations will instruct us as we lean forward, to create our own solutions.

I have been interested in the concept of child impact assessment which I know has been gaining currency in policy circles.

In an international context, having an assessment by which we can determine the likely impact of any policy intervention on children would be a way of making children seen and be seen to count.

It is one way signatories to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child could fulfil their obligation under Article 3 to ensure that the best interests of the child are placed on the agenda.

I want to reshape the notion to instead focus on whanau ora as the means by which we assess the success of any policy idea.

We already have universal health assessments through the form of Well Child Tamariki Ora which can identify specific areas of progress for children.

In response to the Wellchild review a number of improvements are occurring, to develop a greater focus on early developmental stages over the first year of life; a greater focus on child development; family violence; infant-parent relationships and maternal mental health.

And importantly a new process is being piloted this year to take a strengths-based approach in partnership with family and whanau.

And so this is where I come back to Whanau Ora and the importance of an outcomes approach.

The success of Whanau Ora will be measured by increases in whanau capacity to undertake all those functions that are necessary for living well.

It will be assessed through the eyes of the collective – the shared contributions to the wellbeing of a whanau as a whole as well as the wellbeing of individual members.

And this is where I want to commend the Health Promotion Forum for the direct association that you make between Whanau Ora and Tamariki Ora – the two are inseparable; indivisible.

I have struggled with the notion that the child is paramount; or the habitual practice of forever dividing families into :
- Babies, toddlers, children, pre-teens; young adults;
- Perpetrators, victims and children;
- Special needs children and mainstream;
- And so it goes on.

It seems to me, that sometimes we spend so much energy in dividing ourselves up, that we forget about what connects us together.

I am more interested in celebrating our distinctive differences; embracing that which makes us unique.

That is why I believe Whanau Ora has the potential to work in so many different ways – with Maori, with Pasifika, with any community who places value on the collective will to care for our own. It is, as Judge Ida Malosi often says, about restoring the role of the village.

Whanau ora is purely and simply about honouring ‘te aho tapu’ as the foundations we must weave for future generations.

It is about celebrating the potential that each and every family has, to be self-managing; to take responsibility for our future; to be capable of greatness.

We are at an amazing period in our history, when the strands are coming together, te taura whiri o te whanau and it is whanau who we must celebrate as weaving a new direction forward.

That new direction will be strong and enduring, if we look to the legacy of those who dreamed the dreams, who wrote the strategies, who had our best interests at heart.

Our greatest message is to know that we can do it.

We have an incredible network of providers – many of whom are here today – who can provide the support and the experience to ensure our whanau and our families succeed.

This is not about designing a whole new series of programmes or establishing a new branch of providers.

This is about strengthening what we already have – and bringing all of our collective talents and capacity to the fore.

It is about collaboration – working together – with one aim in mind – the wellbeing of our families and children.

I wish you all a wonderful two days together to share your passion to focus on families; to remain steadfast in our complete and utter belief in the wonder of whanau.