Midland Demographic Scan
The Midland Scan
This section provides a brief environmental scan of the Midland region as it relates to Māori health. This section will detail:
The Midland DHB region
List the Iwi within Midland DHB region
Provide demographics relating to the size and age composition of the Māori population within Midland region
Data relating to Māori levels of deprivation
Data relating to Māori health status within Midland
The Midland Region
The Midland region covers a large geographic area and encompasses Tairawhiti DHB, Taranaki DHB, Lakes DHB, Waikato DHB and Bay of Plenty DHB. This area is viewed by many as the power house of Māoridom, based on the size of the Māori population and the large number of Iwi that reside within its boundaries. A map which details the boundaries of the Midland region and the five DHBs located within these boundaries is provided below:
Figure 1 Maori Population by Region
The Iwi within the Midlands DHB region
Many Iwi are located within the Midland region. While the tribal boundaries of each Iwi are not uniform with either the region or even DHB districts it is still relevant to identify what Iwi exist within Midland. The formally recognised Iwi groups that are located with the Midland region are identified in conjunction with their respective DHBs below.
Tairawhiti DHB
Ngati Porou, Ngai Tamanuhiri, Rongowhakaata, Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki.
Lakes DHB
Lakes DHB sits within part of the rohe or Te Arawa waka. In this rohe there are two major iwi: Te Arawa, which covers the Rotorua Lakes area and Ngati Tuwharetoa, which covers Taupo and Turangi. In the extreme western ends of Lakes DHB is Mangakino who are of Ngati Kahungunu ko Wairarapa iwi and to the east is Kaingaroa who are Ngati Manawa.
Bay of Plenty DHB
Waitaha, Tapuika, Tuwharetoa-ki- Kawerau, Tuhoe, Ngaiterangi, Ngati- a- Ranginui, Te Whanau-a- Apanui, Te Whanau-a-Te Ehutu, Ngaitai, Whakatohea, Ngati Pukenga, Ngati Makino, Ngati Manawa, Ngati Whakaue ki Maketu, Ngati Rangi, Ngati Rangitihi, Ngati Whare, Ngati Awa, Ngai Tai.
Waikato DHB
Waikato, Hauraki, Ngati Maniapoto, Ngati Raukawa.
Taranaki DHB
Ngati Tama, Ngati Mutunga, Te Atiawa, Ngati Maru, Taranaki, Ngaruahinerangi, Ngati Ruanui, Nga Rauru.
Demographics
Data obtained from the 2006 Census indicates that within the Midland region some 180,081 people identify as Māori. Tairawhiti DHB district has the highest proportion of Māori within its population, 45% identifying as Māori (18,954). Waikato DHB district has the largest total number of Māori equating to some 65,231 people which constitutes 20% of the total population. Taranaki DHB has the smallest number of Māori (15,015) but in percentage terms matches the percentage that Māori make up within the national population (15%). The Midland region is therefore across all localities an area with a large and significant Māori population.
The Māori population's composition within the Midland region aligns with national trends, and is a mostly young population. The youthful composition of the Midland Māori population indicates potential health gain via a robust primary health sector approach that focuses on prevention or early intervention. Trends also indicate that a significant proportion of the Māori population within Midland is starting to age moving into the 55years+ age range. This is likely to have a considerable impact on the demand for health services by Māori in the near future given the earlier onset of disease for Māori within the 55yr+ age range. The age composition of the Māori population within the Midland region by DHB district is provided below.
Table 2 : Age ranges of Māori Population within Midland
Source: Public Health Intelligence, Ministry of Health - taken from: Robson B, Harris R. (eds). Hauora: Māori Standards of Health IV. A study of the years 2000-2005. Wellington: Te Röpü Rangahau Hauora a Eru Pömare.
The Māori population within the Midland region is predicted to increase over coming years and is projected to be over 250,000 individuals by 2026 as detailed in the graph below.
Figure 2 Maori Population Estimates and Projections
The age composition of the Māori population within Midland is also important as it helps to identify what health priorities exist specific to different age ranges (i.e. rangatahi will have specific health priorities relative to the needs of Kaumatua). The age range also determines what kind of intervention each segment of the Māori population is most likely to require in health priority areas. For instance in the areas of cancer or diabetes the focus for tamariki and rangatahi could be on prevention, for pakeke, early detection and for Kaumatua the focus may be more on chronic disease state management. Across all DHBs there is a common focus to target reducing the impact and incidence of cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and mental health and addictions for Māori. The projected growth in different age ranges for the Māori population within Midlands is provided below.
Source: TAS HNA Data
The graph shows that while the Māori population within Midlands region remains mostly young there is a trend towards an aging of the Māori population as a whole. The numbers of Māori over 55yrs+ is also starting to increase. This is consistent with and aligns to national trends.
Lower socio-economic circumstance
While in recent times there has been an improving trend both nationally and regionally in terms of Māori economic development with "unemployment rates being halved over the last 10 years, and larger numbers of Māori entering and attaining tertiary education," there is also a range of indicators that identify a growing Māori underclass. The lower socio-economic position of many of our whānau is a product of the poverty cycle and can also be linked to the effects of colonisation. National data evidences that despite improvements in socioeconomic status over the last ten years, over half of the Māori population lives in the three most deprived deciles. The lower socio-economic circumstance that many Māori have to contend with is evidenced by a range of indicators, some of which are listed below:
• The median income (half earn more, half earn less than this amount) for Māori in New Zealand was $20,900, compared with $24,400 for all New Zealand.
• The unemployment rate for Māori in New Zealand was 11.0%, compared with 5.1% for all of New Zealand.
• Crime: Māori are greatly over-represented in the criminal justice system. Since 1995 Māori have made up almost half the prison population despite representing only 11.6% of the total New Zealand population aged 15 years and over.
• Fifty point two percent (50.2%) of Māori in New Zealand lived in a household they did not own and paid rent, compared with 29.6% of all New Zealand.
• Indicators show that Māori children are heavily over-represented in those groups that tend to have poor life outcomes - children from low income and/or single- parent families, children with poor health and educational outcomes, and unemployed youths.
• A large proportion of Māori leave school with no formal qualifications. According to the 2006 Census of Population and Dwellings, 43.5% of Māori men aged 15 years and over said they had no qualifications. Only 5.6% had a university degree (or Level 7 Qualification) or higher.
International and national research indicates that people who live in areas of high deprivation are more likely to suffer from poorer health than those who don't. Deprivation acts as a barrier to accessing health services, and can impact on knowledge of what is available and confidence to seek support upon accessing health services. People who live in lower socioeconomic circumstance struggle to live healthy lives because they do not have the same rates of access as everyone else to the wider determinants of health such as adequate housing, social support, employment and safe environments. The graph and table below show that for the Midland region as a whole, half of all Māori live in an area of high deprivation (decile score of 9 and 10). The proportion of Māori in high deprivation across the different DHB's differs, with 35% of Māori in Taranaki living in areas of high deprivation, compared to 67% of Māori in Tairawhiti.