Data shows exclusion and disadvantage has increased among young people in Aotearoa over the past five years
TaiOHI Insights Report 2023 outlines the latest insights from OHI Data Navigator
Despite the best efforts of many community-focused organisations across the motu, the TaiOHI Insights Report 2023 shows a gradual increase in the number of rangatahi experiencing disadvantage in Aotearoa New Zealand, reaching 20.6% in 2022 compared to 20.3% in 2021 and 19.3% in 2018.
The third annual report released by Te Rourou, One Aotearoa Foundation, draws from five years of data within the OHI Data Navigator (2018-2022), providing insights into systems-level shifts and data showing specific experiences of rangatahi.
The report highlights that across Aotearoa, 35% of rangatahi now live in areas with high levels of material deprivation, of these, 31% have experienced exclusion and disadvantage. On the flipside, for young people living in areas with low material deprivation, just 10% have experienced exclusion and disadvantage.
OHI Data Navigator is a free interactive platform that draws on government and community data, with its primary data source being the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI) managed by Stats NZ. The data within OHI Data Navigator is focused on three areas to provide a view on exclusion and disadvantage – experiences of care and protection, justice, and education and employment – and is updated annually in May.
The TaiOHI Insights Report aims to highlight lived experiences of rangatahi through both data and storytelling, with an overall aim of creating a more equitable Aotearoa where rangatahi can thrive.
While one in five rangatahi continue to experience disadvantage and exclusion in Aotearoa, there are some green shoots. Education qualification attainment data for rangatahi Māori in South Invercargill, for example, show increases in the proportion of 16 to 25-year-olds attaining at least NCEA 1, 2 and 3 in the three years between 2018 and 2022.
Along with data from the OHI Data Navigator, the report includes a literature review of reports collated by the Child Wellbeing and Poverty Reduction Group, which sits within the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Prioritising wellbeing, greater connectedness, and supporting aspirations for the future emerged as broad themes from rangatahi. The TaiOHI Insights Report 2023 then summarises seven recommendations, building on calls made in previous reports.
Te Rourou, One Aotearoa Foundation continues to call for systems-level change, and the need to welcome and listen to the voices of those with lived-experience of exclusion and disadvantage, to drive real impact in our communities.
The Foundation is also trying to put this recommendation into practice within its work in Murihiku Southland. The rangatahi Māori fund, Te Ōhaka Tīwhera, is now entering its third year as a participatory funding panel with ten rangatahi helping distribute almost $160,000 to local community organisations from August 2023 to February 2024. By giving youth a voice and decision-making power, they can exercise tino rangatiratanga and help to create local solutions to problems faced by their peers.
For more information on OHI Data Navigator, please visit www.datanavigator.nz.
