Pasifika mental wellbeing initiative must protect our communities: Greens

The Greens welcome $6.6 million from the Government’s $455 million programme to increase access to mental health and addiction services for our Pasifika communities in Auckland and Wellington.

Green Party spokesperson for Pasifika Peoples Teanau Tuiono welcomes the Government’s funding announcement. However, more transformational work needs to be done.

“Too many times our Pasifika communities have been overlooked when receiving services in our Mental Wellbeing space. The majority of our Pasifika people are affected by being in vulnerable environments which contribute to mental ill health.

“It is excellent to see there is support for Pasifika-led services to take the lead in providing for our communities affected by mental ill health,” Teanau Tuiono says.

Chlöe Swarbrick, Green Party spokesperson for Mental Health, is supportive of the initiative as well.

“We have always recognised that our mental health is inextricably linked to communities, our physical wellbeing and sense of belonging, and our relationships with each other,” Chlöe Swarbrick says.

“Everybody deserves barrier-free access to mental health support when they need it. We know that supporting our Pasifika communities to thrive means investing in them, and this is a great start, but more can be done.

“We’ve got to roll out affordable and accessible mental health support for everybody across this country, so we can support Pasifika communities outside of these main regions.”

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