Manea Footprints of Kupe recieves PGF funding

  • Hon Kelvin Davis
Tourism

The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will provide up to $4.6 million towards a new cultural tourism experience in Opononi, Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis has announced.

“There is real potential for tourism to help grow our regions and benefit our smaller communities,” Mr Davis says.

We know that Northland has higher than average unemployment and the Manea Footprints of Kupe Cultural Heritage and Education Centre is a great project that will enhance economic development.”

“It will create up to 14 full-time jobs and will provide additional tourism opportunities for Northland’s West Coast.” 

The Manea Footprints of Kupe Cultural Heritage and Education Centre was identified in the Tai Tokerau Northland Economic Action Plan, which was launched in February 2016.

The Centre will celebrate Kupe’s voyage to Hokianga and his journeys across Aotearoa. It will present and preserve 1,000 years of Māori history through stories of Kupe’s descendants and how New Zealand came to be inhabited by humans, as well as showcasing the local culture and places of historical significance.

There will be a combination of guided tours, interactive performances and technology stations, complemented by taonga repatriated from various museums.

“There is immense opportunity for Māori to develop tourism businesses around their culture, history and stories. Manea Footprints of Kupe is an important part of that offering to visitors," Mr Davis says. 

“Culturally, this project is considered nationally significant and will play a role in retaining Māori identity and celebrating our past. It will also serve as an educational resource in local schools, giving our tamariki a sense of place and inclusion.

“Manea Footprints of Kupe is an ambitious project and will be a world-class asset for Northland’s West Coast."