Youth Week: A Time To Celebrate Rangatahi In Aotearoa

Minister Matt Doocey has launched Youth Week 2024, at an event at the Beehive this evening. Youth Week is a celebration of the incredible young people in each and every community across the motu! 

The event, attended by rangatahi, kaimahi from across the youth development sector, government and opposition politicians, and leading public servants, heard from Hon Matt Doocey (Minister for Youth), Dr Claire Achmad (Chief Commissioner for Children) and Jane Zintl (CEO, Ara Taiohi). 

Speaking at the event, the Minister highlighted that “Youth Week provides us with thes perfect opportunity to celebrate young people and to recognise their talents and strengths. During Youth Week, I also want to recognise the important work that youth workers do to support our young people”. 

The highlights of the evening came from Rezpect Dance Academy, who entertained the audience with an amazing performance, and a stirring speech by Jessica Tupai, winner of this year’s Race Unity Speech Awards. 

This year’s theme, We May Not Have It All Together, But Together We Have It All, formed the basis of a fantastic panel discussion. The audience heard from a panel, comprising of Hon Matt Doocey, Hon Karen Chhour (Minister for Children), Hon Priyanca Radhakrishnan (Labour MP and former Minister for Youth), Tamatha Paul (Green Party MP and Green Party Spokesperson for Youth), and Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke (MP and Te Pāti Māori Spokesperson for Rangatahi), discussed the importance of the theme, supporting each other and how they will be marking Youth Week. 

A festival of youth-led events, organised by local youth development organisations, schools, businesses and councils is taking place across Aotearoa. Details of events can be found at https://arataiohi.org.nz/youthweek/events/

Youth Week is organised by Ara Taiohi - New Zealand’s peak body for youth development, connecting 3,500 diverse groups and practitioners that work with young people to champion and advocate for issues that affect young people and those who work with them.

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