Kotahitanga, Welcoming our new Chief Executive Debbie Power

Our new Chief Executive Debbie Power is led into the Pōwhiri by Felicity Buchanan. Debbie is accompanied by her whānau – Dr Cindy Kiro, State Service Commissioner Peter Hughes (left), Hon Peeni Henare, and to Debbie’s right, her grand-daughter Lilly.

We welcomed our new Chief Executive Debbie Power to the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) in February with a Pōwhiri in our National Office in Wellington.

Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni said Debbie was taking up a very important role in leading MSD and ensuring the Government’s priorities were realised. She said MSD has a crucial role to play in supporting New Zealanders who are experiencing hardship.

In reply, Debbie said it was a privilege to lead the organisation for the next five years. She said her vision was for MSD to be the go-to delivery agency for the Government – to be an organisation that can deliver compassionate and kind services to the one million people that we support every year and help them realise their potential – and to be respected by our stakeholders and government colleagues.

In Debbie’s first few weeks she has been meeting with staff, key stakeholders and cross-agency colleagues and coming up to speed with the changes that have taken place at MSD since she left the organisation four years ago. She has also been closely involved in the past week in managing MSD’s response to the Christchurch tragedy.

“My priority is to make things better and easier for the people, whānau, families and communities who rely on us every year for our services and support. In particular I want to make sure we are focused on delivering – along with our partners and providers – the best possible service to our clients at the frontline.

“I’m looking forward to getting around the country this year and meeting with our partners, providers and stakeholders. We are stronger when we work together in a spirit of kotahitanga and partnership to achieve our shared purpose of helping New Zealanders to be safe, strong and independent.”