Wairoa District Council is now asking the local community to have its say on Te Kaupapa Here mō Te Reo Māori ki te Kaunihera o Te Wairoa - our new Te Reo Māori Policy - which is now out for public consultation.

If this policy is adopted by Council, it will be the first policy to be translated into te reo Māori.

The intention is to translate documents going forward when they are reviewed, and if they meet the criteria, rather than translating existing versions of documents that meet the criteria.

Wairoa Councillors, at a Council meeting on the 9th of May, gave the Te Reo Māori Policy their approval, and it will now go out to residents of the Te Wairoa district for public consultation.

The policy is designed to develop and promote te reo Māori throughout the organisation, and was developed by Council’s Māori Standing Committee.

The policy is another stepping stone towards becoming the country’s first bilingual community, after the launch of Te Wairoa Reorua 2040 on the 10th of December, 2012.

Te Wairoa Reorua 2040 is the vision of four organisations in the Wairoa district, including Te Kura Motuhake o Te Ataarangi, Nga Kohanga Reo o te rohe o Te Wairoa, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngāti Kahungunu o Te Wairoa and Te Taiwhenua o Te Wairoa.

They have come together, with the Human Rights Commission, to work on a strategy to set Wairoa on the path to becoming fully bilingual by 2040.

One objective of Council’s Māori Standing Committee is to empower staff to use te reo Māori by providing access to tools and resources.

Council staff are already taking advantage of these tools and resources by attending regular, bi-weekly te reo Māori lessons, which started this month.

Wairoa District Council signs, where it is appropriate to do so, will gradually become bilingual (as resources permit). Council will roll out these signs over time, when time and resources allow the organisation to do so.

The order will be in Māori first and English second. Bilingual signage will be supported by a robust translation and quality assurance review process.

Consultation on the policy is now open and will close on Friday the 30th of June. Summary of information and submission forms can be collected from Council’s main office in Wairoa or online at www.wairoadc.govt.nz.

Written submissions on Wairoa District Council’s Te Reo Māori Policy can be made up until 5pm, Friday 30th of June.

Those who make a written submission may choose to make an oral submission. Hearings of oral submissions are tentatively scheduled for Tuesday 11th of July at 10am.

Supporting Documents

Click here for te kaupapa here mō te reo māori ki te kaunihera o te Wairoa/Te Reo Māori Policy

Make a Submission

Submissions have now closed.

Contact

Please indicate on your submission forms if you wish to speak to your submission. If you have any questions, please contact Charlotte Knight, Council’s Governance Advisor and Policy Strategist.

charlotte@wairoadc.govt.nz

+64 6 838 7309

Ends

For more information:

Austin King
Communications Officer
Wairoa District Council
06-838-7309

12 July 2017

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