Te Kupenga 2013

Te Kupenga is Statistics New Zealand’s first survey of Māori well-being. The survey gives an overall picture of the social, cultural, and economic well-being of Māori in New Zealand and informs our understanding of diversity within the Māori population.

Alongside general social and economic well-being measures, Te Kupenga contains a number of new measures based on Māori perspectives of well-being. The survey also provides important information about the health of Māori language.

Te Kupenga is a post-censal survey and was answered by people who identified as Māori (ethnicity and/or descent) in the 2013 Census.

Te Kupenga takes a bi-cultural approach to measuring well-being. Alongside general social and economic well-being measures, it introduces a number of new measures based on Māori perspectives of well-being, such as connection to tūrangawaewae, and engagement in contemporary cultural practices. Te Kupenga information informs understanding of the economic, cultural and social outcomes of Māori, and the diversity within the Māori population. There are three important factors driving the need to gain more insight into the well-being of Māori:

1. The Government has specific Treaty of Waitangi and legal obligations to protect and support the health of the Māori language and culture.
2. Māori themselves have a strong interest in gaining more information about the well-being of their people. Underlying this is a clear position within Māori leadership, which is in line with Ngata’s E Tipu E Rea framework, that Māori culture is fundamental to the well-being of Māori.
3. The need to improve the contemporary assessment of needs within the Māori population. Although many indicators show improvement in well-being for Māori, official statistics still show considerable social and economic disparities between the Māori and New Zealand/ European ethnic groups.