In 2018 Tāne Mahuta Forestry gained funding to help with training Māori youth to be work ready in the Eastern Bay of Plenty.
At that time, Tane Mahuta Ltd had seen 135 rangatahi through their training program. Now, in September 2020, the company has trained over 235 ākonga (students) to become qualified in Forestry Operations.
The group has targeted the hardest to reach youths, setting them up in a 18 month 'Learn While You Earn' forestry training programme. Wini Hahipene-Geddes, our co-director said, “They have to be drug free, we talk to their probation officers to give them time off to switch their bracelets on and off so they can attend mahi.”
Simon Geddes, co-director of Tāne Mahuta NZ Ltd, said, “Our kaupapa has been and still is to train and up-skill rangatahi to be able to work on their whenua.” He continues, “When we came back here four years ago none of our rangatahi were working on our whenua.”
After successfully expanding, Tāne Mahuta Ltd has crews of young Māori working in the ngahere (forests) of their whenua (land).
Read more about the funding here: https://www.teaomaori.news/te-teko-company-helping-rangatahi-be-work-ready
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