Govt announces $7.4m for youth impacted by Covid-19

Youth Minister Priyanca Radhakrishnan. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Nearly two dozen youth organisations across the country will receive more than $7.4 million following a Government announcement in Rotorua on Wednesday.

It's expected about 4000 young New Zealanders will benefit from the funding, an extension to the Ākonga Youth Development Community Fund, which was set up in November last year.

The funding is aimed at helping young people affected by Covid-19 to engage or re-engage in education.

Youth Minister Priyanca Radhakrishnan said rangatahi (young people) had faced many difficulties as a result of the pandemic.

"This has been particularly evident in young people's education, where alert level changes and associated school closures have presented learning challenges for ākonga and their whānau."

She said some young people were struggling to remain engaged with education.

"This fund represents a great opportunity for iwi and community-based youth development organisations to work with ākonga [students] to support them to stay connected and committed to their education, while also being active members of their whānau and community."

According to the Ministry of Youth, the fund had a particular focus on rangatahi Māori, Pacific young people, rainbow young people and disabled young people.

The fund sought tenders from community-based programmes that used a "strength-based youth development approach, providing holistic support to ākonga" that also worked with young people's whānau and the wider community, including education providers.

The results of the open tender sees 23 organisations across Aotearoa New Zealand receive the $7.4m funding.

Those services will be delivered outside of traditional education settings such as schools and kura and support ākonga/learners aged 12 to 21 years with wraparound services, from comprehensive mentoring and career navigation, to mental health and well-being assistance.

Last year five organisations received funding to support 1,500 ākonga through the same scheme, which brought the total number of youth assisted to 5500.