Major wananga changes 'to strengthen' institution

Te Wananga o Aotearoa chief executive Jim Mather.

Waiariki's Te Wananga o Aotearoa is merging with the sites in two other districts as the institute moves forward with its redesign - Te Raumairanga.

The changes were announced by chief executive Jim Mather this month and will see the tertiary provider consolidate its six current regions into three districts.

Under the new design, Waiariki (Bay of Plenty) will be combined with Tainui (Waikato) and Whirikoka (East Coast) to create Te Waenga.

Tamaki Makaurau (Auckland), including Te Tai Tokerau (Northland), will make up a district, named Te Ihu, and Papaioea (Central North Island) and Te Tai Tonga (Wellington and South Island district) will unite to create Te Kei.

Mr Mather could not confirm whether there would be staff redundancies in the process but said reductions and cost-cutting were not drivers of the organisational transformation programme.

"We are endeavouring to minimise the impact of these changes and are starting the consultation process with potentially affected staff."

The institute currently employs more than 1400 staff to serve almost 32,000 students across the country.

Mr Mather said the changes were a part of the second phase of the redesign - Te Raumairanga - which aims to further enhance the structure and systems at the institute.

"We are making these changes to strengthen the wananga and provide more effective leadership to achieve high quality educational opportunities and outcomes for the thousands of students who come through our doors each year."

Mr Mather said the former business model was "overly complex and unsustainable in the long term.

"These changes will see the organisation better placed to provide an excellent educational experience."

The merger to three districts would not affect the ability of the institute in providing its programmes from certificate level to Masters, Mr Mather said.

Te Wananga o Aotearoa is the country's second largest tertiary institution and the largest Maori organisation in New Zealand.