Māori agribusiness showcased to international delegation

Māori agribusiness showcased to international delegation

New Zealand’s Māori agribusiness programmes are on show this week, as delegates from Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies visit New Zealand to address common barriers to rural economic development. Through case studies and on-farm visits, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) will share experiences learned while helping to build the capability of New Zealand’s rural economic development.

The visiting delegates from Peru, Indonesia, Japan, China, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines will attend a two-day APEC PPFS Rural Development workshop from 22-24 July 2014, hosted by MPI and the Northland Māori agribusiness partners.

“Food security is a common APEC challenge with increasing demands and a need to focus on sustainable productivity,” says MPI’s Deputy Director-General Ben Dalton.

“MPI’s Māori agribusiness programme is a tangible example of the government’s partnership approach, which has successfully resulted in the sustainable productivity of primary sector assets that Māori own.

“Many APEC communities face similar barriers to rural economic development as New Zealand. These barriers include land tenure and ownership issues, complex governance frameworks, limited access to physical and financial capital, infrastructure constraints, and physical distance to large markets. New Zealand is developing programmes to address these barriers.

“MPI is keen to share experiences and as part of the programme will take the delegates on-farm to see first-hand how the Ministry is partnering with Māori in Northland to increase New Zealand’s rural economic development.

“The delegates will visit a Northland dairy conversion where MPI has partnered with Māori to accelerate the transformation of 278 hectares of Māori-owned land, from grazing to high-productivity dairy farming.

“New Zealand has a well-established reputation in food production and agricultural expertise. As a member of the APEC region we welcome the opportunity to share our experiences and also to learn from experiences and policies of our visiting APEC delegates,” says Mr Dalton.

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