Mainstreaming: A Māori Affairs Policy?

Hekia Parata

Māori affairs policy in the past decade has been characterised by ambivalence and instability. Government  commitments have ranged from rights-based recognition and the involvement and funding of iwi, to needs-based exclusive government provision (mainstreaming). While both policy directions espouse their commitment to the Treaty of Waitangi, neither has clearly articulated what this means in practice. However, both policies recognise the failure of mainstream departments to perform in respect of Māori, and this paper explores certain aspects of why this might be so.

The discussion highlights the fact that the trail of accountability with respect to Māori issues is vague and elusive (faceless government), and there has been no consistent way of measuring the performance of the state sector to show how many Māori have experienced a measurable difference in the quality of their life experience.

With the State Sector Act public service managers are becoming more accountable, and after discussing the changes needed if government departments are to deliver on the Government’s objectives in the Māori area, this paper concludes that it rests with public service managers to define their professionalism in a way that ensures Māori receive equitable treatment. Only then might we actually begin to realise parity in the socio-economic scale.