Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga

Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga is a four-year, $730 million commitment to speed up the delivery of Māori-led housing. It funds both small-scale Māori housing projects and larger developments, from repairing existing homes to building new ones. Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga is jointly administered with Te Puni Kōkiri.

On this page you can find out what we look for in applications and who can apply, as well as information about the two funding pathways available.

About Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga 

Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga can provide funding to: 

  • repair whānau Māori-owned homes and improve the quality of existing houses  
  • build more houses for Māori, including new homes on papakāinga 
  • boost skills and resources so organisations can deliver Māori-led housing solutions 
  • deliver new or upgraded enabling infrastructure e.g. transport (including local roading, state highways, public transport infrastructure, footpaths and cycleways), three waters (water supply, wastewater and stormwater) and flood management infrastructure 
  • deliver new or upgraded onsite infrastructure e.g. site remediation, foundations, onsite three waters including septic tanks, and onsite telecommunications infrastructure costs that won't be met by utility companies.  

Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga funding shouldn't be used in place of funding you could get from another source, e.g. a private source or your local council.  

 

 

What we look for

We're looking to invest in projects that are advanced enough that we're sure they'll be delivered, but are at a stage where they won't progress unless they get extra funding.  

When we evaluate projects we look at: 

  • The housing benefits of the proposal (30 per cent weighting in our decision-making). How does your project contribute to the housing outcomes of Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga and the Māori Infrastructure Fund?  
  • How your proposal supports long-term sustainable Māori-led housing delivery (35 per cent). Show how your proposal enables Māori-led delivery of new housing across rohe or communities with place-based partnerships.  
  • Cost and co-funding (20 per cent). Is the proposal a cost-effective solution for the Government? 
  • Capability and immediacy (15 per cent). If funding is approved, will the project progress quickly? 

Who can apply

To be eligible, you have to be an: 

  • iwi 
  • hapū  
  • Māori entity e.g. a registered business with a minimum of 50 percent Māori ownership, or a Māori Authority. If you're a Māori entity, you can choose to partner with other groups, including city or district councils.  

See the definition of a Māori Authority on the Inland Revenue website(external link). 

You can't apply for funding if your proposed project, or the part of the project which you're seeking funding for, is going to be exclusively used for commercial purposes. 

Funding to build new homes 

If you're building new homes, Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga might be able to support your project through a grant, or in some cases, a loan.  

Rōpū Māori need to contribute financially to the cost of building new homes.  

When making funding decisions, we consider: 

  • Performance against the investment criteria. Does the project align with Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga objectives? 
  • Delivery timeframes. Will the project deliver as many homes as possible in the near-term? 
  • Capacity of the fund. If Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga funds your project, will there be enough left in the fund to support other proposed projects? 
  • How does your project fit into the regional spread of projects funded by Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga? Is it in one of the regions we're focused on? 

There are two funding pathways:

Project pathway (short-term solutions)

This pathway deals with immediate housing needs by funding existing Māori housing programmes. To be eligible for funding you need to show that you're ready to carry out the project and can deliver it in the short-term.

Programme pathway (medium- to long-term solutions)

This pathway focuses on sustainably increasing Māori-led regional housing over the medium- to long-term. The regions that are being focused on initially are:

– Te Tai Tokerau
– Tairāwhiti
– Heretaunga / Hastings-Napier
– Taranaki including Central North Island
– Bay of Plenty region including Rotorua.

Apply for funding 

To apply for funding you can either email WKWO@hud.govt.nz to discuss your project, or submit an expression of interest form.

Download an expression of interest form (DOCX, 295 KB).  

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