Minister takes a tour of Whanganui port revitalisation project Te Pūwaha

Economic and Regional Development Minister Stuart Nash with MPs and Te Pūwaha members at Whanganui port. Photo / Supplied

Economic and Regional Development Minister Stuart Nash was given a tour of Whanganui's port revitalisation project, Te Pūwaha, during his whirlwind visit to the city this week.

Te Pūwaha members hosted Nash, Whanganui MP Steph Lewis and new List MP Soraya Peke-Mason for a walk through of the project from the North Mole to the port rebuild site upstream.

Te Pūwaha is a collaborative partnership between Whanganui iwi, led by hapū group Te Mata Pūau, and community and project funders Whanganui District Council, Horizons Regional Council, Q-West Boat Builders and Whanganui District Employment Training Trust.

Kānoa – Regional Economic Development and Investment Unit is also a funding partner, contributing $26.75 million to the project under the Provincial Growth Fund.

Te Pūwaha governance group members discused the importance of the collaborative nature of the project, ensuring a whole of community voice to deliver better outcomes for the awa (Whanganui River).

Group chairwoman Kahureremoa Aki said they shared how Te Pūwaha could be replicated locally, nationally and internationally.

"The relational power-sharing model in which we are working is innovative to an infrastructure project of this scale," she said.

"Within Te Pūwaha, the awa is at the centre of all decision making, as led by Te Mata Pūau, as project partners work under the guidelines of Tupua te Kawa, the innate values of Te Awa Tupua."

It recognised the connection between people and the natural environment, while developing an economic asset for Whanganui.

"We have set in place a model called He Ara Tuku Rau based on Tupua te Kawa. It ensures we are working towards our parameters of success which are abundance in mouri ora (environment), mouri awa (river) and mouri tangata (community).

"While this model is unique to this project, it is one which could be replicated elsewhere, as one of our community representatives describes it, 'we are on the confluence of a global trend'."

Nash said it was important to be able to see first-hand the works carried out to date and to be able to hear from the project partners.

"Te Pūwaha is a real priority for Whanganui - it will create jobs and provide significant regional development for the region, which is why the Government has invested more than $26 million in this project.

"Te Pūwaha is a great example of the many community-led projects across the country the Government is investing in, to ensure our regions have the infrastructure they need to thrive and grow, and to boost local economies. It was fantastic to see the progress on this significant project."

The tour included the wharf upgrades led by Whanganui District Council and the Q-West site which includes the development of a dedicated marine precinct with a specialist heavy pavement catering to a new 380-tonne mobile boat hoist to be delivered in June 2023.

Lewis said it was a great opportunity to see progress at the port.

"This is a project I have strongly advocated for many years," she said.

She had urged Nash, as spokesman for regional economic development prior to the 2018 election, to consider funding the project so that plans could progress.

The district council plans for construction work at the wharves to begin in early 2023.