Kiwi 'buddies' for Asian migrants

Auckland City Council will be getting into social networking when it launches a pilot project tomorrow to "buddy up" Chinese-speaking immigrants with Kiwis living in the central city area.

The project, Come Over to Our Place, aims to overcome shyness and the fear of the unknown - identified as barriers that are preventing people from meeting those from different cultural backgrounds in a study by the Office of Ethnic Affairs.

"New migrants often have good connections with their own ethnic or cultural communities, but it can be challenging to create these within the broader community," said Nandita Mathur, the city council's community services manager.

"There are often cultural and linguistic barriers for many New Zealanders both from migrant communities and more established groups who want to mix socially with people from different cultural backgrounds.

"Successful settlement into New Zealand society is a two-way process with benefits for both migrant communities and for those who already live here," Mrs Mathur said.

According to the 2006 Census, 24.4 per cent of people living in Auckland City are Asian and 9.8 per cent speak Chinese.

Chinese are the largest Asian ethnic group with 98,390 people identifying themselves as belonging, and the combined total of speakers of Chinese languages makes it the most common language spoken after English.

The project will pair people up for a range of social activities, such as Chinese cooking classes and creative sessions at Artstation.

Participants will spend about three hours every week with their buddy learning about each other's culture for a seven-week period.

"Many people living in large cities experience a sense of isolation and marginalisation," Mrs Mathur said. "This experience can be acute for migrants. This project aims to provide an accessible way for the everyday person to extend the hand of friendship and enjoy the many gifts that come with cross-cultural sharing."

Participants will share their experiences through photographs, pictures and, possibly, each other's languages at the end of the project.

An Asia New Zealand Foundation study last year found that the number of New Zealanders who had personal involvement with people from Asia was increasing, but those who had "hardly any" contact with Asians felt significantly cooler towards them.

The study, New Zealanders' Perceptions of Asia, found almost six in 10 (58 per cent) said they had "a lot" or "a fair amount" of personal involvement with Asians, up from the 2007 result of 48 per cent.

Primary points of contact include shopping, business, friends, the neighbourhood or community and schools and education.

"Generally, results over time indicate that personal involvement with Asian people has been steadily increasing since 1998."