PĀNUI
NEWS
A New Chapter for Harm Reduction Across Te Waipounamu.
01/ / 10 / 2025
He Waka Tapu and the Te Waipounamu Collective are proud to announce the official launch of the new Needle Exchange Programme across Te Waipounamu, blessed into existence on Wednesday the 1st of October 2025.
The launch marks a significant and historic moment for harm reduction services across the South Island. The Te Waipounamu Collective, made up of four kaupapa Māori health providers, He Waka Tapu, Ngā Kete Mātauranga Pounamu, Poutini Waiora and Te Piki Oranga, is now responsible for delivering free, confidential and stigma-free needle exchange services from Te Tauihu all the way down to Murihiku, Rakiura and Rēkohu. This is a kaupapa that stretches across the motu, reaching into communities that have long deserved equitable access to harm reduction services delivered with dignity and respect.
The programme is built on a simple but powerful foundation. No judgement, no questions, no barriers. People who inject drugs deserve access to safe, sterile equipment and the right to care and support without fear of stigma or discrimination, and that is exactly what this collective is here to provide. Our services are peer-led and peer-based, grounded in harm reduction, and driven by a health and human rights focused approach that puts the consumer group at the heart of everything we do.
"We believe in the programme and are committed to providing continuity of support to people who currently access the service. In time we look forward to improving access to those who may benefit from the service." - Toni Tinirau.
The programme is built on a simple but powerful foundation. No judgement, no questions, no barriers. People who inject drugs deserve access to safe, sterile equipment and the right to care and support without fear of stigma or discrimination, and that is exactly what this collective is here to provide. Our services are peer-led and peer-based, grounded in harm reduction, and driven by a health and human rights focused approach that puts the consumer group at the heart of everything we do.
As He Waka Tapu CEO Toni Tinirau said at the time of the launch, "We believe in the programme and are committed to providing continuity of support to people who currently access the service.
In time we look forward to improving access to those who may benefit from the service." That commitment runs through everything the Collective brings to this mahi, not just the equipment and the outlets, but the relationships, the trust, and the deep understanding of what it means to show up for people without judgement.
As a kaupapa Māori collective with a combined workforce of over 400, these four organisations bring deep roots in their communities and a long history of delivering holistic health and social services to whānau across Te Waipounamu. The NEP has stood for 38 years as one of Aotearoa's most successful public health programmes, and the mana and responsibility that comes with that legacy is not lost on us.
The Te Waipounamu Collective is honoured to carry that baton forward, and to do so in a way that honours both the history of the programme and the people it serves.
Services are available now across dedicated outlets in Ōtautahi, Hakatere and Timaru, alongside partnered pharmacies and alternative providers throughout Te Waipounamu, with mobile outreach services to follow. All services are free, confidential, and available without referral.
