Waatea news: Moving the conversation from homelessness to economic security
A kōrero that starts with Move-on Orders, but asks a much bigger question: what would it take to create lasting housing and economic security for wāhine Māori?
In her recent conversation with Matthew Tukaki at Waatea NEWS , CEWH Kaihautū Dr Kathie Irwin, MNZM, Pūkenga Rangatira, MInstD looks beyond Move-on Orders to the wider conditions shaping homelessness for wāhine Māori.
Kathie points to concerns raised about the Move-on Orders by the Attorney-General, The New Zealand Law Society and Amnesty International around freedom of expression, freedom of movement, peaceful assembly, arbitrary detention and procedural fairness.
The kōrero moves to what communities can do, including local housing solutions, and to the growing economic and social precarity experienced by older wāhine Māori.
Kathie highlights the compounding effects of pay inequity, lower home ownership and fewer opportunities to build savings and assets over a lifetime.
And there is another vitally important thread: education.
Research from the Human Rights Commission has identified education level as a critical factor in gender and ethnic pay differences for Māori women.
That connects directly to Kathie’s mahi in education, and to the upcoming Tū Toa 2026 | Creating Māori Success in Education conference, hosted by Kathie Irwin and Associates and The Mana Wahine Foundation. The conference brings together research, evidence and practice around what helps Māori learners succeed.
As Matthew Tukaki put it:
“We need to move this conversation on from homelessness to economic security and resilience.”
