Debate heats up: Is $1 million for NZ's Pacific healthy homes enough amid a housing crisis?

The Government’s plan to extend the Pacific Healthy Homes initiative is expected to benefit an additional 200 homes.

The initiative, which has already helped over 300 Pacific families get warmer and drier homes in the past year, will receive $1 million until June 2026.

In an interview with William Terite on Pacific Mornings, Minister for Pacific Peoples, Dr Shane Reti, says the next round will expand the eligibility criteria of the project.

“The Pacific Healthy Homes initiative is an initiative I started last year, building on the existing Healthy Homes initiatives but fine-tuning it for Pasifika,” Reti says.

Specifically, the updated criteria will include the older Pasifika age group, targeting individuals aged 45 and over who have had a hospital admission.

The initiative primarily focuses on Auckland and Porirua, where Reti says significant populations of Pacific people live.

Dr Shane Reti (second from left) at the Central Pacific Collective in Porirua to see the site where new homes for Pacific families will be built. Photo/Supplied

To be eligible for the initiative, you must be Pacific aged over 45, on a low income, who has been hospitalised due to a preventable illness, and live in Porirua or South Auckland, either in their own home or a rental property.

Young Pacific children with these conditions and pregnant people are already supported through the wider Healthy Homes Initiative.

The University of Otago is currently evaluating the programme to guide future investments in Pacific housing solutions.

Watch Dr Shane Reti's full interview below

According to the latest Census, over half of Pacific people live in homes with at least one housing problem, such as dampness or mould, compared to 32 per cent of the total population.

The 2018 General Social Survey reveals that housing problems and the need for repairs are associated with poorer life satisfaction and adverse mental and physical health outcomes for Pacific people.

Those living in problematic housing are more likely to suffer health issues.

For example, 24 per cent of individuals with asthma reported having an attack, compared to 15 per cent in healthier homes, and 28 per cent of those in poor housing reported more than two colds, compared to 20 per cent in better conditions.

Half of those in problematic homes also reported having the flu at least once in the past year.

Reti says the initiative is designed to create long-term change rather than offering quick fixes.

The Pacific Healthy Homes initiative is an extension of the Advancing Wellness at Home Initiative (AWHI) programme. Photo/MPP

“Some of them can take a bit of time to remedy, but even simple things like draft management, broken windows, have a huge impact on families, and certainly some of the anecdotal information and feedback that we receive is that it has made a big difference in many Pasifika people's lives.”

While welcoming the continued investment, Labour’s Deputy Leader, Carmel Sepuloni, says ‘it’s a drop in the bucket’.

Sepuloni tells PMN News that the government’s cancellation of thousands of public housing projects has had a drastic impact on Pacific people.

“We’ve seen a surge in homelessness - reportedly by 90 per cent in Auckland, as the government restricts entry into emergency housing,” she says.

“[There have been] 18,000 jobs lost in the construction [industry] because of the pausing or cancellation of all these projects.

“So while I welcome this investment, it goes nowhere close to fixing the problems they’ve caused,” Sepuloni says.