Sheryl Mai: Working together to grow our NI regions

Mayor Sheryl Mai.

The upper North Island's environment is critical to our nation's success.

On Friday I was one of seven mayors and chairs who assembled in Auckland to discuss how the upper North Island's councils can plan, invest, work and campaign together to represent the 2.5 million Kiwis we have been elected to represent.

That's right - 2.5 million, more than half the population of the entire country - lives in the areas governed by Northland Regional, Whangarei District, Auckland, Waikato Regional, Hamilton City, Bay of Plenty Regional and Tauranga City councils.

Our group called UNISA, the Upper North Island Strategic Alliance, was receiving a report called The upper North Island Story 2016-2017. It's online and I recommend you have a surf through it - not only is the information in it very interesting, it is presented in a very straight-forward way.

Here are some of the facts it contained:

The upper North Island is the powerhouse of New Zealand. Its GPD in 2015 was $117 billion, over half of the $220 billion New Zealand economy's GDP. It employs more people than the rest of the country does - 1.19 million filled jobs in 2015, almost 52 per cent of all filled jobs in New Zealand.

It is the gateway to the world. Auckland Airport is the arrival point for a majority of New Zealand's international visitors, and the Ports of Auckland, Tauranga and Northport export and import a majority of New Zealand's goods.

The upper North Island's environment is critical to our nation's success - with four of the upper North Island's main industry sectors (forestry / wood processing / dairy / tourism) dependant on the natural environment.

It is also home to some of New Zealand's most significant natural assets such as our longest river, largest lake and all of New Zealand's kauri forests.

For a council like ours this drives home how vital the infrastructure we are responsible for providing and maintaining is to the nation.

Currently 64 per cent of goods by value within New Zealand move through the upper North Island ports and Auckland International Airport, and freight volumes are forecast to increase by 59 per cent by 2042.

All of this is good news. It means we are part of a powerful group of organisations who have the resources and intelligence to see the big picture, and the will and ability through UNISA, to work together to our mutual benefit.

The burning question that I have as I look around our beautiful district, is how do we grasp every opportunity to develop ourselves and work with other people to grow and prosper, while at the same time maintaining the unique qualities that make our district so desirable?