Government Boosts Productivity For Taranaki LandHon Mark PattersonAssociate Minister for Regional DevelopmentHon Tama PotakaMinister for Māori DevelopmentThe Government is providing a $950,000 loan through the Regional Infrastructure Fund (RIF) to support a Māori trust to increase productivity on its farmland near Hāwera. The Omuturangi 6E & 7A Ahu Whenua Trust, which administers 84 hectares of land on behalf of 290 owners, will receive the funding and contribute $120,000 to the project. “In the longer term, the trust’s aspirations are to self-govern and manage their whenua Māori more profitably. They will also use the farm to train their people in commercial farming,” Mr Potaka said. It provides investment where funding could not be secured elsewhere and supports regional growth and employment,” Mr Potaka said.