Te Waka Whaiora says new child poverty figures showing 170,000 children in hardship should be read as a mental health warning, not just an income statistic.
Statistics released to media from the Ministry of Social Development found 13 percent of children were in material hardship in 2023–24, up from 11 percent three years earlier. That’s 47,500 more children since 2022.
Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad has called the findings a national shame and asked party leaders to agree a child poverty accord.
Carole Koha, Pou Kaihautu of Te Waka Whaiora, says the wellbeing of tamariki can’t be separated from the conditions they live in.
“A cold house and an empty cupboard don’t just make a child sick. That’s the kind of hardship that follows a person for life, and we see where it leads if nothing changes.”
Te Waka Whaiora is the only kaupapa Māori mental health and addictions provider in the Porirua to Ōtaki corridor, delivering services from mild to moderate through to severe and complex, through health coaches embedded in GP surgeries.
“We work with whānau every day who are carrying more than any family should have to. You can’t fix a child’s mental health in a clinic room and send them home to a house that’s cold and a fridge that’s empty.”
With a general election approaching, Koha says whoever forms the next government needs to commit to fixing this, instead of just managing it.
“This is the kind of thing that gets talked about at election time and forgotten straight after. Given the state of the country right now, and the real chance of a change of government, whoever’s in charge next needs to actually commit, not just talk.”
Te Waka Whaiora is backing the Children’s Commissioner’s call for a cross-party child poverty accord.
About Te Waka Whaiora
Te Waka Whaiora is the only kaupapa Māori mental health and addictions provider in the Porirua to Ōtaki corridor, delivering services from mild to moderate through to severe and complex need.
For more see: https://www.tww.org.nz/