Te Ōhanga Māori continues to be a strong, growing, unique, and diversified component of the economy

Te Ōhanga Māori reports provide valuable insights on the Māori Economy and its contribution to the wider economy in Aotearoa New Zealand, offering crucial data to support decision-making for iwi, businesses, and government. 

Commissioned by MBIE and developed by BERL, Te Ōhanga Māori 2023 report builds on previous editions from 2010, 2013, and 2018.  The report draws on data from the 2023 Census, as well as information from Statistics NZ, the Māori Land Court, and other key sources. 

The full Te Ohanga Maori 2023 report is available on the MBIE website, alongside data highlights on Te Matapihi – The Data Dashboard. 

At a glance

• New analysis shows the Māori economy has seen significant growth and contributed $32b in 2023. 
• The report also shows a growth in Māori entrepreneurship and an increase in Māori holding higher skilled roles within the workforce. 
• Food and fibre has traditionally been key to the Māori economy due to its substantial asset base in the sector. Whilst the $39.7b assets in Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing remain the largest share of the total the total Māori asset base of $125.8b, the Māori economy is rapidly diversifying into other sectors.  

The Māori Economy / Te Ōhanga Māori 

• Te Ōhanga Māori contribution to the Aotearoa economy grew from $17 billion in 2018 to $32 billion in 2023.  For 2023, this represented 8.9% of GDP based on the production measure.  Other GDP measures (expenditure and income) had a higher Māori contribution to GDP.  
• While agriculture, forestry, and fishing was the primary contributor to GDP in 2018 at $2.4b, professional, scientific and technical services led the way in 2023.  In 2023, the Māori contribution to GDP for agriculture, forestry and fishing was $3.6b. 
• The Māori asset base grew from $69 billion in 2018 to $125.8 billion in 2023. While agriculture, forestry and fishing remained the most significant at $39.7b, the Māori asset base is diversifying, with real estate and property services experiencing substantial growth.  
• Although the Māori asset base nearly doubled between 2018 and 2023, its share within the total Aotearoa asset base increased more modestly, from 3.4% to 4.4%. 
• The rates of entrepreneurship had risen significantly from 2018 to 2023 with a 49% increase in Māori self-employment and a 31% increase in Māori employers. 
• In 2023, there were 23,748 Māori-owned businesses, an increase from 19,200 in 2018 – with the largest number (around a quarter) located in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.   
• The Māori population grew from 775,836 in 2018 to 887,493 in 2023.   
• In 2023, 70% of Māori are of working age, where there is 69% Māori labour force participation and 9% Māori unemployment.  
• There has been a positive shift in the skill levels of Māori workers, with 46% now in high-skilled jobs, 14% in skilled jobs, and 40% in low-skilled jobs. In 2018, 37% of Māori were in high-skilled jobs and 51% in low-skilled jobs. 

Food and fibre sector

Māori exports  

• In 2023, Māori exports were dominated by the primary sector ($1.9billion) and manufacturing ($1.9b).  About $1.1 billion from the manufacturing sector was related to the primary sector, including dairy and meat processing, other food manufacturing, as well as wood and paper manufacturing. 

Te Ōhanga Māori asset base 

• Agriculture, forestry and fishing held the largest share ($39.7billion) of the total asset base ($125.8b), where sheep and beef farming had the highest asset base ($12.3b), followed by dairy ($11.8b) and forestry ($6.3b) 
• Māori employers and collectives hold a substantial portion of the asset base in agriculture, forestry, and fishing:
  • Employers held $16.2b - dairy farming accounted for the largest share ($6.2b)
  • Collectives held $19b - sheep and beef farming represented the largest sector with $7.2b in assets, followed by dairy ($4.4b), forestry ($2.9b) and fishing ($2.3b)
  • Self-employed held $4.5billion - sheep and beef farming held the highest share ($1.7b) followed by dairy ($1.1b) and forestry ($0.9b) 
• Waikato holds the largest share of the agriculture, forestry and fishing asset base in Te Ōhanga Māori. 
• Around 40% of the Waikato Māori asset base is in the primary sector (sheep and beef, dairy and forestry). 

Around half of the Te Ōhanga Māori agriculture, forestry and fishing asset base is held by collectives   

• Māori collectives owned around half ($19b) of all agriculture, forestry and fishing assets in Te Ōhanga Māori, where the proportion of these assets relative to their total assets varied from rohe to rohe. In Kurahaupō, a high proportion (87%) of primary sector assets were held by Māori collectives, followed by Tairāwhiti (73%).  
• While collectives own 73% (or $2.3b) of the total Māori asset base in fishing ($3.1b), they are not involved in fisheries processing. 
• Māori collectives increased their ownership of horticulture assets (kiwifruit and other horticulture), from $659 million in 2018 to $2 billion in 2023.  

Māori-owned businesses  

• The agriculture, forestry, and fishing sector had the second highest number (4,908) of Māori-owned businesses, with the construction sector having the highest number (5,865) 
• 1,686 Māori-owned businesses in the primary industries operated sheep and beef farms, followed by dairy (1,209) and other agriculture (1,101) 
• The majority of Māori-owned businesses in agriculture, forestry, and fishing were located in Waitaha (1,107) and Waikato (904). 

Labour force 

• Around 21,000 Māori were working in the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sector in 2023, down slightly from 2018 at around 22,000.  In 2023, there were 17,751 Māori employees representing 21.8% of all employees in the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sector.  In 2018 there were 19,506 employees representing 22.2% of all employees in the sector.