Governance grounded in te ao Māori
When the opportunity came up to study Manu Taiko, New Zealand Certificate in Māori Governance, at the Ngāmotu (New Plymouth) campus of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, Paora Rauputu didn’t hesitate to enrol.
As Pouwhakahaere of the Taranaki Māori Business Network, Paora (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Tama) identified a gap among whānau serving on boards, trusts and committees without access to formal governance training.
“When Manu Taiko came up, I knew this was what our whānau needed. I put it out to our network, and we had some of our pakihi Māori owners come on board, so we were able to go through the programme together. It was a great experience.”
Māori governance is no small subject, and Manu Taiko covers a range of topics, including collective decision-making, finances, strategic planning, and risk management.
With the support and skill of their kaiako, Paora was pleased to see that even in a diverse classroom with varying levels of knowledge, she was able to bring clarity to complex ideas while grounding everything in tikanga Māori.
“Our kaiako was awesome, she brought a lot of energy and experience. There’s a lot to cover in 6 months, but she made it clear and did well moving the class along together. She had that depth of experience that was necessary to deliver the programme.”
For Paora, what stood out about Manu Taiko was that it’s not just for Māori, but for anyone willing to learn through a te ao Māori lens.
He encourages more Tiriti partners to study the programme, as it shifts the focus of governance beyond profit to people, relationships, and collective wellbeing.
“You don't have to be Māori to study Manu Taiko. If you want to get an ao Māori view on governance, then definitely enrol. It's good to get that perspective and it opens your thinking to a different worldview.”
Having begun his journey at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa years earlier studying reo Māori, Paora’s return to study Manu Taiko deepened both his knowledge and his connection to te ao Māori.
It also gave him the confidence to continue embracing te reo Māori in everyday life.
“I didn’t grow up with te reo and I can still get whakamā about standing to kōrero. But going back to Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, you’re immersed in it, it’s all around you. You open with karakia and waiata, and it becomes a natural way of seeing our reo alive. I really enjoyed that part of it as well.”
Learn more out Manu Taiko, New Zealand Certificate in Māori Governance.
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