The Ākarana Sarah Whānau Trust in Hastings has today opened its newly completed communal housing development at Bridge Pa.
Minister for Māori Development Nanaia Mahuta Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
Te Puni Kōkiri, the Ministry of Māori Development, has invested $376,661 towards the papakāinga development's infrastructure costs.
A papakāinga is a village, original home or communal Māori land.
Minister for Māori Development Nanaia Mahuta has praised whānau on their vision of building homes on ancestral land.
"Their vision is to live in a whānau-oriented community, on ancestral land, in a community that supports Māori achievement through sustainable healthy living and education," Ms Mahuta said.
The Minister said whānau are now "well on their way" to owning and building their own homes with papakāinga developments such as this one.
"Papakāinga combine the space where identity, whakapapa and whenua come together and provide opportunities for whānau to live as a community according to kaupapa Māori - ensuring knowledge and whakapapa are passed on to the next generation," she said.