Awatere Douglas, hotel manager at Sudima Lake Rotorua and cultural adviser to the Sudima Hotels group.
Awatere Douglas, hotel manager at Sudima Lake Rotorua and cultural adviser to the Sudima Hotels group.
Sudesh Jhunjhnuwala launched a hotel internship programme for Māori and Pacific youths to address skills shortages.
The programme offers practical experience, mentorship, and a supportive environment across eight Sudima Hotels properties.
Internships include a paid wage, travel stipend and cash incentive, targeting youths not in employment or training.
A business leader known for helping exploited migrants has turned his spotlight to the skills shortage in the tourism sector with a new hotel internship programme for Māori and Pacific rangatahi.
Last month, Sudesh Jhunjhnuwala, founder and CEO of Sudima Hotels and Hind Management, gave jobs to three Indian migrants who’d arrived in New Zealand to find the jobs they’d paid tens of thousands of dollars in visa fees for didn’t exist.
“I do not have jobs for everyone. It made a very small difference in the number of people exploited. I was only able to save three of them, but there are so many other people who are exploited so badly,” said Jhunjhnuwala.
Now he’s focusing on the high rates of unemployment among Māori and Pacific youths with a programme that addresses the skills shortage in the tourism and hospitality sector by providing practical experience and mentorship.
Sudesh Jhunjhnuwala, founder and CEO of Sudima Hotels.
The Jhunjhnuwala Family/Hind Management Māori and Pacific Youth Scholarship 2025 offers internships across the group’s eight properties and provides hands-on experience in hotel operations, mentorship from industry experts, and a supportive environment.
“This is one small step in the support needed for our Māori and Pacific youths, who are fundamental to our country’s hospitality and tourism sector,” says Jhunjhnuwala.
“We are first and foremost a people business, and it’s my mission to promote diversity, inclusion, and accessibility. We’re proud of our latest national scholarship and invite eligible candidates to apply.”
The programme targets Māori and Pacific youths who are not currently in paid employment, education, or training, offering them opportunities to gain practical experience in customer service and hotel operations.
Interns will learn about hotel sustainability while developing confidence, connection and leadership skills. The programme includes a paid hourly wage, a travel stipend, and a cash incentive upon completion.
This initiative builds on Hind Management’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and promoting indigenous leadership within the industry.
The company’s efforts have been recognised with multiple awards, including HRD’s Five Star Employer of Choice Award for 2019, 2022, and 2024, and the HRNZ Building Sustainability through People Award 2024.
As the inaugural recipient of the Ngāti Whakaue Sudima Hotels Scholarship, Douglas says it was the support of his whānau with the scholarship and many mentors that changed his world.
“I was able to study for tertiary qualifications in tourism and te ao Māori and have never looked back.
Sudima Hotels cultural adviser Awatere Douglas.
“This new scholarship is a platform to bring more rangatahi into hospitality. It’s a great moment to join our hospitality-tourism waka and inspire your whānau, community, and the nation.
“I encourage Māori and Pacific youths to take the first step – nau mai, haere mai, tauti mai!”
The new Māori and Pacific Youth Scholarship follows the Ngāti Whakaue Sudima Hotels Scholarship Programme, established in 2014, which assists Ngāti Whakaue descendants in obtaining training, employment, and junior leadership positions within Sudima Hotels.
The Māori and Pacific Youth Scholarship is open to residents aged 16-24 of Māori and Pacific descent who are pursuing a career in hotel or hospitality management, events, or tourism studies, or recent graduates of these studies.
Paid internships will be offered for three-month terms (with intakes in February and October) or six-month terms (commencing from October 2025). Applications close on Monday, January 27, 2025.
