Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Bias and discrimination affected ethnic peoples' employment, participation in sports and house ownership, a comprehensive report has found.
The Ethnic Evidence report, prepared by the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, was released in the parliament this evening to shed light on how New Zealand's ethnic communities were faring.
The all-encompassing report looked at the communities' work and employment, health and wellbeing, connectedness and belonging, covering more than 50 indicators and 120 measures.
Census 2023 found that nearly a third of people in New Zealand were born overseas in over 200 different birthplaces, with people living here identifying with a wide range of ethnicities and speaking more than 150 languages.
Ethnic Communities Minister Melissa Lee said while the diversity of New Zealand population has been increasing, this has not always been reflected in the available data.
"Too often and for too long, ethnic communities have largely been invisible in public sector data. As a result, their voices have not always been heard in government decision-making and service delivery," Lee said.
The new report was the first resource of its kind to focus on ethnic communities, "helping to fill the voids in data that have existed for too long", she said.
"The report sets a baseline for tracking the progress of our ethnic communities over time and paints a wide-ranging picture of how they are faring."
Ethnic communities include anyone who identifies their ethnicity as Asian, Continental European or MELAA (African, Latin American or Middle Eastern), including refugees, migrants and long-term settlers, according to the ministry.
The report was divided into three outcomes based on the ministry's strategy, including contribution to New Zealand's economy, access to public services, and how people feel about diversity and inclusion, with each featuring three or four thematic domains.
It has found that ethnic communities do not always get equal returns for their educational investment and are often not in the pipeline moving toward leadership, although the workforce was highly skilled and has high labour market engagement.
"While some gains have been made, there is still work to be done to achieve pay parity and good representation in leadership roles," the report said.
Asian people report better physical health outcomes than people from other ethnic groups, but they are falling behind in terms of physical activity, according to the report.
A lack of social support and physical literacy skills, language difficulties, financial and time constraints, cultural differences in sports preferences and limited access to sports funding information all impeded physical activity participation by Asian migrants, it noted.
"Chinese immigrants can be reluctant to participate in mainstream sports due to cultural preferences and experiences of discrimination."
Bias and discrimination also affected house ownership for ethnic communities, with Asian people, along with Māori and Pacific peoples, experienced a higher level of unfair treatment in housing over their lifetime than New Zealand European people, the reported noted.
Asian people can also find it harder than other ethnic groups to express themselves or their identity, and younger people from ethnic communities experience more difficulty being themselves.
"Often Asian, Māori and Pacific peoples see multiculturalism as part of New Zealand's identity, but Europeans can be less likely to view New Zealand through a diversity lens," the report said.
In terms of engagement and voice, the report said ethnic communities are gaining representation in elected positions at the national government level but are under-represented in government board appointments.
Ethnic communities experience a lower level of victimisation from crimes such as burglary, theft and fraud but experience more prejudice and intolerance than average, the report said.
"Like other communities, ethnic communities are experiencing heightened exposure to cybercrime, which is a growing area of victimisation in New Zealand and globally," it said.
"Feelings of safety have decreased in the community, particularly for Chinese people."
The report also found ethnic communities have some of the best performing students in the country and adults with the highest educational attainment, as well as an increase in household income for Asian communities.
Chief executive at the ministry Mervin Singham said in the report that "being visible in the data matters".
"Currently, many ethnic communities are largely invisible in New Zealand in public sector discourse. Their contributions, their intersectional experiences (such as gender and their diverse skills and perspectives) are not highlighted, and their wellbeing outcomes and disparities remain largely hidden," Singham said.
"Gathering data and evidence is a pathway to equitable access to information and services.
"We need to consider how the public sector can improve the way data is collected, used to engage with communities, and harnessed to drive effective policy, service delivery and investment decisions."
The report will be shared across the public sector and used to guide policy design and service delivery, Singham said.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.