More than a quarter of disabled children live in poverty
On 26 February 2026, Stats NZ released Child Poverty Statistics for the year ended June 2025.
Nau mai, haere mai.
Welcome to Whaikaha - Ministry of Disabled People.
About 1 in 6 New Zealanders are disabled. We work across government, businesses, and communities to improve outcomes for them.
We focus on things that make a tangible difference to disabled people, tāngata whaikaha Māori, and their families and whānau, whether that means working with partners to get more people into employment or making New Zealand more accessible.
Disabled people and tāngata whaikaha Māori make an important contribution to society and the economy. We have a huge opportunity for that to grow even further.
Whaikaha does not provide direct support to disabled people or their families. For more information about services and support available, visit Disability Support Services.
News from Whaikaha
Nominations open for the 2026 Erin Geaney GLE Scholarship
Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People is inviting nominations from the disability sector for the Erin Geaney Global Leadership Exchange (GLE) Scholarship 2026.
Whaikaha update - March 2026
Deputy Chief Executive Ginny Baddeley shares updates about our work to improve employment outcomes, and a new programme to fund accessibility ideas.
About Whaikaha
Get to know Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People, our role in Government, and our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Find resources on collecting and using disability data and recent updates from across New Zealand.
The New Zealand Disability Strategy gives direction to government agencies on issues disabled people, tāngata whaikaha Māori and whānau say are important.