Māori Business Stats 2024 Released by Stats NZ

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We would like to acknowledge all of those who contributed to this data release by providing data through various surveys and other means. We thank you for your support and for sharing your knowledge and information with us. We understand that the information of iwi, hapū, the community, and whānau are treasured, therefore we greatly appreciate your willingness to share such treasures with us.

Tatauranga umanga Māori - Statistics on Māori businesses: 2024 presents information on two subsets of Māori businesses - Māori authorities and other Māori enterprises (Māori businesses that are economically significant but are not Māori authorities) - that contribute to our country's economy. This release also includes data on Māori tourism businesses that may be either Māori authorities or other Māori enterprises. It does not cover all Māori businesses in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Tatauranga umanga Māori - Statistics on Māori businesses: 2024 (te reo Māori) is also available.

Key facts

In 2024:

• 1,353 Māori authorities and 4,425 other Māori enterprises were identified for this release
• of the total 5,778 businesses, 420 (7.3 percent) were identified as Māori tourism businesses
• 17 percent of Māori geographic units were located in the Auckland region
• Māori authorities employed around 12,700 people, while other Māori enterprises employed around 44,000 people
• around 21 percent of Māori authorities operated in primary industries
• there was a total of 651,800 hectares of land on Māori farms
• Māori authorities exported $903 million worth of goods, 27 percent of this to China
• other Māori enterprises exported $510 million worth of goods
• the total income for Māori authorities was $5.6 billion, up 6.8 percent from the 2023 financial year.

Māori authorities are economically significant businesses involved in the collective management of assets held by Māori. Any business within a Māori authority ownership group is also included for the purposes of Tatauranga umanga Māori releases.

'Other Māori enterprises' in this release refers to Māori businesses that are economically significant and are not Māori authorities.

Definitions and metadata has more information on how we identified businesses included in this release.

Māori tourism businesses may be either Māori authorities or other Māori enterprises. They include businesses involved in activities such as accommodation, food, transport, arts and recreation, and administration and support services.

Population changes for 2024 release

The number of Māori authorities and other Māori enterprises in this release has increased compared with previous releases, due to the identification of additional Māori businesses. Therefore, the data here differs from data published in previous Tatauranga umanga Māori releases.

Overview of population changes has more information about these changes.

Topics

Business demography by industry
Employment
Business demography by region
LEED data
Agriculture
Exports of commodities
Financial performance
Definitions and metadata
Overview of population changes
Data updates to Tatauranga umanga Māori

Business demography by industry

Māori authorities

There were 1,353 Māori authority businesses identified as operating in 2024, an increase of 9 (0.7 percent) compared with 2023.

One-fifth (21 percent) of Māori authorities were in the primary industries, and one-third (33 percent) were non-residential property operators - that is, businesses that rent out non-residential properties, such as agricultural land and office space.

Text alternative for Proportion of Māori authorities, by industry, 2024

Other Māori enterprises

In this release, we report on 4,425 other Māori enterprises, with businesses across a range of industries. The top industries were:

• professional, scientific, and technical services (825 businesses)
• agriculture, forestry, and fishing (780 businesses)
• construction (480 businesses)
• health care and social assistance (327 businesses).

Text alternative for Proportion of other Māori enterprises, by industry, 2024

Māori tourism businesses

This release includes 420 Māori tourism businesses across the following range of tourism-specific industries:

• arts and recreation services - 192 businesses (46 percent)
• accommodation and food services - 135 businesses (32 percent)
• transport, postal, and warehousing - 33 businesses (7.9 percent)
• administrative and support services - 30 businesses (7.1 percent)
• all other industries - 30 businesses (7.1 percent).

Employment

Employee count for Māori authorities

The number of people employed by Māori authorities rose by 700 (5.8 percent) between 2023 and 2024, to 12,700.

The industry with the highest number of employees was agriculture, followed by other primary industries:

• 17 percent of all employees of Māori authorities were employed in agriculture.
• 10 percent were employed in other primary industries.

Employee count for other Māori enterprises

The number of people employed by other Māori enterprises was 44,000 in 2024, up 1,500 employees (3.5 percent) from 2023.

In 2024 compared with 2023, the number of employees in other Māori enterprises changed as follows:

• health care and social assistance industry, up 6.2 percent (600 employees)
• administrative and support services industry, up 5.1 percent (300 employees)
• education and training, up 10 percent (150 employees)
• professional, scientific, and technical services, up 3.8 percent (150 employees).

Employee count for Māori tourism businesses

The total number of people employed by Māori tourism businesses in 2024 was 3,700, up 150 employees (4.2 percent) from 2023.

Employee numbers increased in almost all Māori tourism industries. The biggest movements by industry in 2024 compared with 2023 were:

• arts and recreation services, up 9.1 percent (100 employees)
• accommodation and food services, up 2.8 percent (50 employees)
• transport, postal, and warehousing, up 8.3 percent (30 employees).

Business demography by region

Counts presented in this section are at the geographic unit level. A geographic unit is a business location engaged in one, or mainly one, kind of economic activity at a single physical site or base (for example, a factory, a farm, a shop, a school, or an office). Therefore, the total number of geographic units and employees reported in this section will differ from the business and employee counts in the sections above.

Count of Māori geographic units by region

In 2024, there were 6,561 Māori geographic units across Aotearoa New Zealand.

Most Māori geographic units (5,484 units, 84 percent) were in the North Island. Of the total Māori geographic units, the regions with the most units were:

• Auckland, 1,128 geographic units (17 percent)
• Bay of Plenty, 1,083 geographic units (17 percent)
• Waikato, 861 geographic units (13 percent)
• Wellington, 606 geographic units (9.2 percent).

In the South Island, there were 1,050 Māori geographic units (16 percent). Areas outside the North and South Islands, or 'Area outside region', had 21 Māori geographic units (0.3 percent).

Count of employees of Māori geographic units by region

In 2024, Māori geographic units had 57,100 employees across Aotearoa New Zealand. The regions with the highest number of these employees were:

• Auckland, 13,900 employees (24 percent)
• Bay of Plenty, 7,700 employees (13 percent)
• Waikato, 6,500 employees (11 percent)
• Wellington, 5,300 employees (9.3 percent).

In the South Island, there were 10,700 employees (19 percent). Areas outside the North and South Islands (Area outside region) had 70 employees (0.1 percent).

New Zealand business demography statistics: At February 2024 has information on business and employee counts for all New Zealand businesses.

Business demography statistics - DataInfo+ has more information about this data, including general methodology about the collection, definitions for terms used, and data accuracy.

LEED data

LEED data for Māori authorities

Linked employer-employee data (LEED) includes measures on filled jobs and worker turnover rates. A quarterly measure is used to calculate worker turnover rates, so this section contains quarterly references rather than annual comparisons.

Filled jobs is defined as the number of jobs on the 15th day of the middle month of the reference quarter. There is no distinction between full- or part-time jobs. Due to the difference in reference periods and methodology, the number of filled jobs may differ from the number of employees presented in the business demography section.

In the March 2024 quarter, Māori authorities accounted for a total of 12,070 filled jobs. Filled jobs for Māori authorities rose 2.4 percent (280 filled jobs) from the December 2023 quarter. Compared with the March 2023 quarter, filled jobs for Māori authorities rose 3.8 percent (440 filled jobs).

Worker turnover rate is a measure of workforce stability, with a lower rate meaning more stability. It is a ratio of the average number of employees who have joined and who have left employers since the previous reference date, compared with the average total number of jobs over the two periods.

Worker turnover rate for Māori authorities in the March 2024 quarter was 16.7 percent, up 0.8 percentage points from the December 2023 quarter. Compared with the March 2023 quarter, the worker turnover rate for Māori authorities fell 1.6 percentage points.

LEED data for other Māori enterprises

In the March 2024 quarter, other Māori enterprises accounted for a total of 39,610 filled jobs. Filled jobs for other Māori enterprises fell 2.4 percent (990 filled jobs) from the December 2023 quarter. Compared with the March 2023 quarter, filled jobs for other Māori enterprises rose 1.5 percent (590 filled jobs).

Worker turnover rate for other Māori enterprises in the March 2024 quarter was 17.4 percent, up 1.3 percentage points from the December 2023 quarter. Compared with the March 2023 quarter, the worker turnover rate for other Māori enterprises fell 0.8 percentage points.

LEED quarterly technical notes has more detail about measuring worker turnover.

Linked employer-employee data: March 2024 quarter has information on filled jobs and worker turnover rates for all New Zealand businesses.

Guide to interpreting the LEED Data has more information on worker turnover rates.

Agriculture

For statistical purposes, a farm denotes one or more blocks of land managed as a single operation and engaged in agricultural activity. Māori farms are geographical units belonging to Māori authorities or other Māori enterprises. Activities include livestock farming, horticulture, viticulture, nurseries, forestry, growing grain, and seed crops.

Māori farmland

There was a total of 651,800 hectares of land on Māori farms in 2024, representing 5 percent of total New Zealand farmland.

This land consisted of:

• grassland - 320,200 hectares (4.5 percent of the national total)
• horticulture land - 6,000 hectares (4.5 percent of the national total)
• exotic forestry plantation - 161,700 hectares (8.5 percent of the national total)
• bush and scrub - 107,200 hectares (9.2 percent of the national total)
• all other land (including tussock and arable land) - 56,700 hectares (2.0 percent of the national total).

Livestock on Māori farms

At 30 June 2024, Māori farms had the following livestock:

• sheep - 1.2 million (5.0 percent of national total)
• beef cattle - 194,500 (5.3 percent of national total)
• dairy cattle - 185,500 (3.2 percent of the national total)
• deer - 7,900 (1.1 percent of the national total).

Agricultural production statistics: Year to June 2024 (final) has data about agricultural businesses across Aotearoa New Zealand.

Agricultural Production Survey 2024 - DataInfo+ has information about agricultural production statistics, including general methodology about the collection, and data accuracy.

Exports of commodities

Exports of goods by Māori authorities

Exports of commodities reported in this release include those directly exported by Māori authorities and other Māori enterprises. Māori enterprises may on-sell their goods to other enterprises who export on their behalf.

Māori authorities exported $903 million worth of goods in 2024, a rise of 11 percent compared with 2023. Exports to China made up 27 percent of Māori authority exports, down from 29 percent in the previous year. Exports to countries other than China and the United States of America made up 70 percent of Māori authority exports, up from 66 percent in 2023.

Milk powder, butter, and cheese accounted for one-quarter (26 percent) of all exports by Māori authorities in 2024.

Exports of goods by other Māori enterprises

Other Māori enterprises exported a total of $510 million in 2024, a rise of 2.0 percent from 2023. Of all exports by other Māori enterprises:

• $31 million (6.1 percent) were to Australia
• $30 million (5.9 percent) were to the United States of America.

Overseas merchandise trade: December 2024 provides information on imports and exports of merchandise goods for all New Zealand businesses.

Financial performance

In the 2024 financial year, the total income reported by Māori authorities was $5.6 billion, up 6.8 percent ($357 million) from the previous year. Operating income grew by 11 percent ($529 million), while non-operating income fell by 35 percent ($172 million). Total assets were $31.6 billion, up 6.9 percent ($2.0 billion).

Results from the 2024 Annual Enterprise Survey (AES) indicated that total income for all New Zealand businesses increased by 5.5 percent, AES total expenditure rose 3.1 percent, and AES total assets increased by 3.5 percent.

In 2024 compared with 2023, Māori authority businesses' total surplus before income tax decreased by $2 million (0.4 percent) to $605 million.

Operating surplus before tax (excludes non-operating income and non-operating expenses) grew by 26 percent ($126 million) in the 2024 financial year.

Debt-to-equity ratio (defined as total liabilities divided by total shareholder equity) of Māori authorities was 37 percent in 2024, compared with 38 percent in 2023. For all New Zealand businesses in 2024, the debt-to-equity ratio was 190 percent. Māori authorities typically have a lower debt-to-equity ratio compared with non-Māori businesses. This is because Māori authorities tend to rely more on shareholder equity to fund business growth compared with non-Māori businesses, which rely more on creditors and loans.

Annual enterprise survey: 2024 financial year (provisional) has more information on financial performance for all New Zealand businesses.

Definitions and metadata

Data standard for Māori business provides a definition for collecting and producing data and statistics about Māori businesses. Māori businesses are those that are fully or partly owned by a person or people who have Māori whakapapa, and a representative of that business identifies the business as Māori.

Definitions of a Māori business for Tatauranga umanga Māori - DataInfo+ explains how we identified the enterprises included in this release.

Methodology for Tatauranga umanga Māori - DataInfo+ explains the methodology for each component of this release and provides more information on the data and tables.

Tatauranga umanga Māori: 2023 pūrongo matatini - Statistics on Māori businesses: 2023 technical report provides contextual and technical information about the publication of Tatauranga umanga Māori.

Overview of population changes

The table below provides an overview of changes to business and employee counts for other Māori enterprises for 2022 and 2023.

Data updates to Tatauranga umanga Māori

We have revised the population and updated data for this release. The changed population means that data will differ from previous releases. Data is not available for the Business Operations Survey in 2024.

We identified an error in Tatauranga umanga Māori - Statistics on Māori businesses: 2023, affecting both the English and te reo Māori publications. Overseas merchandise trade values for other Māori enterprises only, including all breakdowns, were slightly higher than they should have been due to a data-processing error.

The error has been corrected in this release; however, data has not been revised in Tatauranga umanga Māori - Statistics on Māori businesses: 2023.

Text alternative for Proportion of Māori authorities, by industry, 2024

Infographic shows the percentage of Māori authority businesses by industry for 2024. Sixteen percent of businesses were in agriculture, 6 percent in other primary industries, 33 percent in non-residential property operators, and 46 percent in all other industries. Percentages are based on rounded numbers and may not sum to 100.

Text alternative for Proportion of other Māori enterprises, by industry, 2024

Infographic shows the percentage of other Māori enterprises by industry for 2024. Nineteen percent of businesses were in professional, scientific, and technical services; 18 percent in agriculture, forestry, and fishing; 11 percent in construction; 7 percent in health care and social assistance services; and 45 percent in all other industries. Percentages are based on rounded numbers and may not sum to 100.

Technical enquiries

Tara Hayward
[email protected]
04 931 4228

ISSN 2744-6417

Next release

Tatauranga umanga Māori - Statistics on Māori businesses: June 2025 quarter will be released on 10 October 2025.