Kotahitanga - The big picture - General news across MSD

Reporting on what is being achieved for New Zealanders

This year’s Annual Report has a strong focus on people and the communities we serve because first and foremost that people are the focus of everything we do.

The report is a rich source of information about how we, often in partnership with others, support youth, whānau and families, working-age people, students, people with disabilities, seniors and communities to be safe, strong and independent. 

Each year we work with more than one million New Zealanders who need our assistance for all sorts of reasons. This could include financial support to reduce hardship, help to re-enter the workforce, temporary or permanent assistance to lead an independent life, support to increase safety and wellbeing, a safe, warm and dry house, a student loan, support with costs of childcare or New Zealand Superannuation.

In the financial year from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018, we oversaw the expenditure of over $25 billion to provide New Zealanders with financial and non-financial support and services. New Zealand Superannuation accounts for over half of this expenditure, and benefits and non-housing-related financial assistance less than a quarter.

We also refreshed our purpose statement to ‘Manaaki tangata, manaaki whānau’ to better reflect the importance we place on the care of people and families, and developed a new strategic direction Te Pae Tawhiti – Our Future. Our strategic direction takes its name from a whakatauki (proverb) which encourages us to seek out the distant horizons while cherishing those achievements at hand.

We will be focusing our work over the coming year on three core shifts that will enable us to work better with our clients and partners and achieve better outcomes for New Zealanders, while building on the strong foundations we have established.

Find out more in our 2017/2018 Annual Report

Read about our strategic direction in our 2018/2022 Statement of Intent