Deal puts teaching in iwi hands

Deal puts teaching in iwi hands

Te Wānanga o Raukawa has signed a landmark agreement with the Office of the Auditor General reaffirming its status as a non-crown entity and placing its governance and accountability firmly in the hands of its founding iwi.

The iwi, known as the ART Confederation, are Te Ātiawa ki Whakarongotai, Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, and Ngāti Toa Rangatira. The joint statement is a commitment from the OAG – independent from the crown – to work in partnership on accountability and reporting requirements.

Signed on May 5, the statement represents far more than an administrative change, says Wānanga tumuaki Meihana Durie.

“It’s a powerful step toward Māori educational sovereignty,” he says. “For Māori communities across Aotearoa, this change signals a future where mātauranga Māori can be nurtured, protected and developed by Māori, for Māori, in a way that upholds tikanga and the aspirations of whānau, hapū and iwi.”

He says the change builds on a decades-long struggle for recognition, which began with the initial claim lodged in 1998 by all three wānanga followed by Te Wānanga o Raukawa WAI 2698 claim in 2017. These claims challenged crown practices that limited Māori control over wānanga development and mātauranga.

The resulting legislative change, passed in 2023 and taking affect from January 1, 2024, has now created a pathway for wānanga such as Te Wānanga o Raukawa to operate with genuine tino rangatiratanga.

Under the new framework, Te Wānanga o Raukawa will still work with the crown and auditor-general around funding and quality assurance. However, its core accountability now rests with the ART Confederation, reflecting an equal partnership under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

“For Māori, this milestone reaffirms the right to determine how mātauranga is taught, preserved, and passed on,” Meihana says. “It is a bold affirmation that Māori knowledge systems have value, integrity, and a rightful place in shaping the future of education in Aotearoa.”