Pita Tipene, a prominent leader from Te Tai Tokerau, has been awarded the Tai Tokerau Māori Business Leader Award in recognition of his work across multiple sectors, serving his people and indigenous communities globally.
The Ngāti Hine descendant has served on numerous boards over the years, most notably as chair of the Waitangi National Trust and the Ngāti Hine Forestry Trust.
A key focus for Tipene has been the creation of Te Pouahi o Te Tai Tokerau, a Māori housing initiative he founded in 2020 to address homelessness in Kawakawa and surrounding areas.
Tipene says he has always strived to put his people at the centre of any business decision.
“Koia tēnā ko te pūtaketanga o taku haerenga ki roto i tēnei ao. E mea ana te kōrero, mena, kāhore kē e tika ana ngā kaupapa i te kāinga, e kore koe e taea te hāereere haere ki roto i tēnei ao.”
The collective has secured $55 million in government funding to build 100 homes, but Tipene says long-term self-sufficiency and partnerships with the private sector are vital to lasting change.
He ringa tōhau nui ki te kāinga, he kākākura ki te ao
Ko Tipene tērā i kōkiri i te kirimana tauhokohoko tuatahi a ngā iwi taketake o te ao, arā, ko Indigenous Peoples Economic and Trade Co-operation Arrangement (IPETCA), i te tau 2021.
Ko Aotearoa, Kānata, Ahitereiria me Taiwāna ngā whenua tuatahi o tēnei kawenata tauhokohoko. Hei tā Pita, ehara i te mea ko te moni te mea nui.
“Ko ngā iwi taketake, kāhore kē e pērā ana. Me tiakina te taiao, ina tiaki koe i te taiao, ka tiaki te taiao i a koe. Nā reira, koia tēnā tetahi tino rerekētanga o ngā iwi taketake, kia kaua e kite ko te pūtea, ko te moni tō atua.”
Me whai whakataunga kerēme tiriti a Ngāti Hine
Kua whitu tau a Tipene i nōhia rā te tūru hoematua ki te tarahti ā-motu o Waitangi.
Ahakoa ka heke ia i tērā tūranga i tēnei tau, kei te mihi tonu ia ki ngā kaimahi, nā rātou tērā wāhi e manaaki.
Me te aha, he kaupapa nui tonu kei mua i tōna aroaro, arā, kia whakawhiwhia tana iwi o Ngāti Hine ki tētahi whakataunga tono tiriti motuhake.
“Ko rātou kē ngā tāngata, e tino mahi ana i ngā mahi. Hoi anō tāku, e noho i roto i taku tūru, hei heamana mō te poari. Engari, e mōhio ana tātou ko wai kē ngā tino kaimahi.”
