The prime minister said the official opening of the Suicide Prevention Office at the Ministry of Health this morning was a bittersweet but important moment.
Health Minister David Clark and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at the opening of the Suicide Prevention Office. Photo: RNZ / Yvette McCullough
The Suicide Prevention Office is one of the key components of the government's $40 million investment in the Wellbeing Budget, aimed at tackling New Zealand's high suicide rate.
Ms Ardern said it was vital to bring down the country's shameful statistics.
"Last year 685 New Zealanders are believed to have taken their lives through suicide. Each of those deaths was a tragedy and we must do more to support people in distress, or struggling with addiction," she said.
"This is about having an absolute focus on all of the complex issues that contribute to suicide and acknowledging that one death is one too many."
The government also announced a $1m Māori and Pacific suicide prevention community fund.
Over the next four years, this will be used to support Māori and Pacific providers to design and deliver culturally responsive suicide prevention initiatives.
"We know Māori and Pacific are over-represented in suicide statistics and we need to find and support new community responses that will help change that," Ms Ardern said.
Health Minister David Clark believed the office would "galvanise" work towards reducing suicide.
"I believe together we can - and will - fix this long-term challenge and make New Zealand the best place in the world to grow up and live. A country where people know there is always someone to reach out to and get help.
"We want every New Zealander to know that when times get tough, if they are in distress or they reach a crisis point, there is someone they can turn to for help", Dr Clark said.
The Suicide Prevention Office will initially be established as a team within the Ministry of Health's Mental Health and Addiction Directorate, with the aim of eventually becoming a stand-alone agency.
Director Carla na Nagara said today was not about the opening of a bricks-and-mortar structure, but about a "shared commitment to lowering our suicide rate".
"It leaves in its wake, literally thousands of grief-stricken and bereft whānau and communities and I think that always must be acknowledged as we face the challenges ahead of us.
"I do believe that we can turn things around and that we can bring our suicide rate down but I also believe that this will only be achieved if the nature of the problem we face is well understood and if collective responsibility is understood", Ms na Nagara said.