Philip Alexander-Crawford.

June 18, 2024

Chief Executive, Hanga-Aro-Rau
Te Whiu, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Rēhia, Ngāpuhi

Hiwa-i-te-rangi brings hope to our industries for a vocational system that can help us successfully navigate our current economic times and elevate our ākonga, kaimahi, businesses, and hapori for long-term success.

With change comes the opportunity for improvement. From industry feedback, we've identified key elements crucial for a vocational system that supports prosperity for all:

A Strong Workforce Pipeline

  • Ensure stability and enable sustainable growth.
  • Address chronic skills and labour shortages.
  • Build and maintain a diverse workforce.
  • Support learners to succeed.
  • Tap into the talent of previously under-served groups.
  • Ensure robust and sustainable career pathways for all our ākonga.

Recognising and Embracing Diversity

  • Develop a strong and connected vocational education system.
  • Anticipate and respond to the changing needs of our demography, workplaces, and industries.
  • Flexibly prioritise on-the-job training designed around industry capability and capacity.
  • Aspire to help our people become highly skilled, better paid, and experience a sense of well-being.

Understanding Local and Regional Nuances

  • Cater to the specific needs of employers and the workforce, whether rural or metropolitan.
  • Ensure a nationally consistent approach to training and qualification outcomes.
  • Meet local needs while enabling portability and transferability of skills and knowledge.
  • Enhance our country's productivity through these tailored approaches.

Delivering Value for Money

  • Align the vocational education system with industry needs.
  • Ensure provision directly links to the needs of learners, employers, hapori, and our evolving workforces.
  • Having structures that recognise the value of maintaining the independence of standard setting and skills leadership.
  • A smooth transition to the new system.

So, as we contemplate spending time or having a celebratory kai with our whānau and friends, let's return with ambition and advocate for what we see is needed in OUR vocational system.