Tourism booming below Hikurangi

The launch of the new qualification in Tourism Māori was the cause of a M ?ori Regional Tourism Operation (MRTO) hui hosted by Associate Tourism Minister Dover Samuels in Tikitiki, Gisborne, in June this year.

Those gathered at the hui included NZQA, Tourism New Zealand, Aviation, Tourism and & Travel, Training Organisation (ATTTO), Kiwi Experience bus tours and members of Te Runanga o Ngati Porou (TRONP), including chairman Dr Apirana Mahuika and niece Keri Johnston, who is a member of the whakaruruhau for tourism.

The tourism industry for Ngati Porou offers an extensive range of tourist attractions, including mountain climbing, horse trekking, homestays with people of the iwi, rugged four-wheel drives to the top of mount hikurangi, fishing and hunting. Actually, there isn’t much that Ngati Porou doesn’t offer in the way of tourism. There’s something for everyone. This fact makes the new qualification in Māori tourism a vital part of the growth in tourist opportunities in Gisborne.

I think that there’s going to be a diverse range of directions in which Ngati Porou tourism will head in the future,? Dr Mahuika says. There’s so much here.?

The new qualification will not only provide iwi with nationally and internationally recognised qualifications but will also provide TRONP with the opportunity to create unit standards that are unique to the area in which they live. This is possible through the flexible components that are in field M ?ori on the National Qualifications Framework. This unique learning style was adapted especially for iwi, Māori organisations and M ?ori learners.

Hon Dover Samuels said, the tourism industry needs people and iwi who can promote, enhance and protect the uniqueness of Tourism Māori in Aotearoa. Gaining a national qualification in Tourism M ?ori will give people the specialist skills and knowledge to pursue a career in this exciting market.