Poor government records continue to hurt Pasifika, Chief Archivist warns

Poor government record-keeping is continuing with missing or poorly managed information affecting everything from people’s identity to healthcare and access to justice, New Zealand’s Chief Archivist says.

Speaking with Khalia Strong on PMN’s Pacific Mornings, Anahera Morehu said good record-keeping is not just about paperwork, it has a direct impact on people’s lives.

“We know that when there is neglect on information, it impacts our Pasifika people and any of our demographics around their identity, their sense of belonging, their faith in the pathways that they lead into,” she said.

Her comments come as a new Archives New Zealand report found most government agencies are still not meeting standards for managing public records, although some have improved.

Morehu said accurate records are important for transparency and public confidence.

“Good government record keeping means that all New Zealanders can hold government accountable for their decisions,” she said. The public needs to have trust in the decisions that the government is making.”

A new Archives New Zealand report found many government agencies are still falling short of expected recordkeeping standards, although improvements have been made across parts of the public sector. Photo/RNZ/Samuel Rillstone

She said poor information management could also affect essential services such as healthcare.

“If a doctor didn’t have access to the information that they needed through poor description of the information or the way that it was inputted or the way that it was stored, then that could impact on the health of someone.”

Morehu said the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care highlighted the importance of proper record keeping, with incomplete or missing records making it harder for survivors to find answers about their past.

Watch Anahera Morehu's full interview below.

“In 2024, I apologised to our people around the failures in record keeping,” she said.

“With our Pasifika survivors, there's a lot of work that has been done in the background from our team to actually help agencies that were part of the neglect or part of the lack of information record keeping to improve their processes.”

The Ministry for Pacific Peoples (MPP) was identified in the report as receiving the lowest “Beginning” rating in several areas during a 2021 audit.

The review found staff had limited awareness of their recordkeeping responsibilities and that the Ministry lacked visibility over some records held in off-site storage.

But the ministry said those findings no longer reflect its current performance.

In a statement to PMN News, Danilo Coelho de Almeida, the Deputy Secretary, Corporate Services and Support, said an independent audit, completed in March 2026, found “substantial improvement”, with nine areas rated “Progressing” and seven rated “Managing”.

Danilo Coelho de Almeida says the Ministry for Pacific Peoples has made significant improvements to its information management systems since a 2021 audit, with a 2026 review showing higher ratings across most areas. Photo/nz.linkedin.com

“Six key areas moved two levels from Beginning to Managing, including information management strategy and policy, governance, management of high-value information, technology systems and storage.”

He said the Ministry had strengthened its information management systems through better governance, clearer accountability and improved systems to protect high-value information relating to Pacific communities.

Morehu welcomed the progress, saying the Ministry’s latest results showed it was “doing a really, really great job in meeting the requirements”.

She said improving recordkeeping across government remains essential to ensuring Pacific communities can access the information they need and have confidence in public institutions.