PĀNUI
NEWS
Te Tauraki @ HWT: Kaitūwhana Wānanga 2026.
27 / 02 / 2026
On 25 February 2026, He Waka Tapu hosted Te Tauraki for their first inclusive Kaitūwhana wānanga, a chance to bring providers & kaimahi together and kōrero about what this next chapter looks like in practice.
For those across our community who may have noticed the shift in language, from Navigator to Kaitūwhana, this is more than a rebrand. It is a return to whakapapa.
At He Waka Tapu, our mahi has always been grounded in tikanga, whakapapa, and the strength of our whānau. As the Whānau Ora landscape continues to evolve across Te Waipounamu, we have embraced this shift in language as a reaffirmation of the way our tīpuna understood collective responsibility and leadership.
Or as our CEO Toni Tinirau puts it: "I think this shift moves us away from a term that became familiar and overused. 'Navigator' became the trendy word for NGOs and Ministers about 12 to 14 years ago, and over time it drifted away from whānau being at the centre. The renaming to Kaitūwhana is a real reset in direction. It's about reclaiming mana for whānau. It's a kupu that sits across the motu and returns us to the whakapapa of this mahi."
"Whānau don't need someone to carry them across the river. They need someone standing beside them, pole in hand, ready to move when they are."
The wānanga on 25 February brought real energy. Te Tauraki's Tanith, Taone, and Watene were on the ground to connect directly with kaimahi and providers, and that whanaungatanga set the tone for everything that followed.
The day covered the full picture: clarity around service areas, how and why support is delivered, what the outcome focus is for whānau, and the criteria for whānau accessing the service.
There was also a deep kōrero around how funding can be accessed to help whānau reach their own aspirations and goals, a reminder that this mahi is always about self-determination, never dependency.
But a good wānanga makes room for the hard questions too. Kaimahi raised genuine concerns about whānau in communities sitting outside SA3 provider areas, and the real anxiety being felt when whānau want to engage with a trusted provider but are told they live beyond the boundary. These aren't abstract policy concerns. They're felt by real whānau in real communities, and they were heard.
This wānanga didn't happen in isolation. Across the motu, the kaupapa of Māori-led health and wellbeing is gaining ground, and the pressure for real system change is building.
Te Taumata Hauora o Te Kahu o Taonui has released a Hauora Policy Manifesto calling for system transformation grounded in Te Tiriti principles and Māori-led solutions. At its heart sits Mokopuna Ora, a vision where our pēpi and mokopuna grow into rangatahi who are healthy, connected to their whakapapa, and equipped to thrive. That intergenerational vision is exactly what drives the Kaitūwhana kaupapa.
As we move into 2026, the focus remains steady. Strong commissioning, stronger relationships, and a clear direction toward the vision of Whānau Māori living healthy, thriving lives.
Ngā mihi nui ki a Te Tauraki, ki ō rātou kaimahi, and to everyone who showed up for the wānanga with open hearts and good questions.
