A growing economy doesn’t always mean a nation is doing well. Measuring well-being and implementing measures to address this problem bridge this gap.
The New Zealand economy is booming.
Economic growth was 6 percent in 2021 and 2.4 percent in 2022. The employment rate for 15-64 year olds is 80 percent, the third highest among the 38 OECD countries.
Still, times don’t feel good for Sarah.
* Sarah is a young person living in Christchurch, the largest city in the South Island.
She is one of 315 children whose families live in the city’s shelters.
Her family has been living in a motel room for more than a month after rising prices left her unable to pay the rent.
Sarah’s family wants to move into temporary accommodation so they can have their own home again, but there’s a long line in Christchurch. On average, families stay in the city’s transitional shelters for about six months. It shouldn’t take longer than 12 weeks. The Child Poverty Action Group is monitoring the experiences of young people like Sarah across New Zealand. In May 2023, she published a report on how families on welfare are faring.
It revealed that couples with two children living in a private apartment face an income deficit of NZ$300 per week.
When children do not have sufficient economic resources to fulfill their potential, there are long-term repercussions. Not just for yourself, but for the country. For example, the Dunedin Longitudinal Study has shown how negative experiences and certain characteristics in childhood can predict poor health outcomes and socially harmful behavior later in life.
Sarah’s story challenges the old way of thinking that economic policy should be measured simply by how fast the economy is growing. Economies can grow in such a way that many families do not have access to decent housing or decent work. Focusing on economic growth for its own sake causes further damage. Scientists have long warned that human economic activities are altering the Earth’s climate, and New Zealand is not immune, as it is experiencing two “unprecedented” extreme weather events in the space of just a few days – record-breaking Auckland floods and Cyclone Gabrielle in February 2023.
The total damages bill is estimated at up to NZ$14.5 billion. Countries are thinking more carefully about what a welfare economy should look like. The New Zealand government accepts this principle. Since 2019, the finance minister there has been creating so-called welfare budgets. The fifth health budget was presented to Parliament on May 18, 2023.
A health budget begins with the selection of priority goals based on a health needs analysis. In the 2023 budget there are five. First up is the climate crisis. The budget aims to support New Zealanders’ transition to a climate-resilient, sustainable and low-carbon economy.
Another goal is to improve health outcomes, with a focus on the mental well-being of young people. A third priority focuses on preparing people and businesses for the future of work, while the fourth aims to improve the incomes, skills and opportunities of Maori and Pacific peoples.
The fifth priority is to reduce child poverty and improve child well-being. This includes better access to affordable, safe and stable housing. Sarah’s story was heard.
The government wants to halve child poverty by 2027/28 compared to ten years earlier – an ambitious goal. There have been improvements in the official dataset. Increases in income support and the statutory minimum wage have made a difference. However, more work is needed if we are to reach the 10-year targets. Housing remains a pressing issue.
The housing register is a waiting list for social housing. As of March 2023, 24,080 applicants were registered, 92 percent of whom had significant and ongoing housing needs.
New Zealand is not the only country pursuing a welfare economy. WEGo is a partnership of Scotland, Iceland, Wales, Finland, Canada and New Zealand whose leaders are committed to sharing their expertise and policy insights as they grapple with the challenge of improving the well-being of people and the planet.
The New Zealand experience shows that countries can shape their economic policies to focus on major welfare issues such as climate change and child poverty. New Zealand’s welfare budgets illustrate how government goals and policies can be subject to public scrutiny.
The New Zealand experience also shows that there are no easy answers to the major economic challenges facing our well-being and the well-being of future generations.
New Zealand’s welfare budgets are important steps in a new direction, but there is more to discover as countries move towards a welfare economy.
* Sarah is a composite character based on several people working with municipal housing providers in Christchurch, New Zealand
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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