Minister praises ethnic council
The Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities, Priyanca Radhakrishnan, last week thanked members of the Taranaki multi-ethnic council executive committee for their recent mahi around the vaccine roll-out.
The minister, who is also Minister for Youth and Minister for Community and Voluntary Sector, was in the region on Friday and joined with New Plymouth MP Glen Bennett to visit several groups in the region.
Speaking after her visit to the Taranaki multi-ethnic council executive committee, Radhakrishnan said the work put in by the committee to help with the Covid-19 vaccine rollout was greatly appreciated, and had made a difference to the community.
“They did an amazing job in helping with the vaccine rollout. They got the information from the Government translated into 24 different languages, they made videos about it in their mother tongue and they made sure the necessary information was conveyed in a relevant way.”
Making sure ethnic communities were able to get and understand all the information around the vaccine rollout was vital, she said and was about more than just language.
The committee also worked on having vaccine clinics set up in places that were familiar to members of the different ethnic communities, organised translators and even food when appropriate to ensure people felt comfortable in their surroundings.
“It’s all about removing barriers, and they did that very well.”
Radhakrishnan also spoke to the group about the importance of representation in leadership roles. It is vital public sector boards truly represent the diversity and demographic makeup of New Zealand, she said.
“Currently only about 4.8 per cent of public sector board members come from ethnic communities. That needs to change.”
A nominations database is being maintained by the ministry she said, from which they could recommend these people for public sector boards and committees when appropriate.
She encouraged people to register with the database to ensure ethnic communities were fully represented and involved in future decision making, saying ethnic communities make up a large part of the population.
“Aotearoa New Zealand’s ethnic communities make up 20 per cent of our population, and that number is growing.”
As Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities, she often heard from people facing issues around employment, she said.
“Employment is often raised with me as a major issue new migrants face as well as career progression. We have a plan, called the Employment Action Plan, to bring about tangible change and to remove the barriers people face.”
The minister and Bennett also met with members of Volunteering New Plymouth and Zeal Taranaki in New Plymouth, before heading south to meet up with Whanganui MP Steph Lewis and visit Te Ara Pae Trust in Ha¯ wera.