Muka Tangata, the Workforce Development Council for the food and fibre sector, has been holding a series of hui with industry leaders to hear about their workforce needs. 

In a few weeks the council will release its future plans, based on feedback and insights from the hui, several of which were attended by NZPPI People Capability Advisor Alice Schofield. 

The establishment of Muka Tangata in October 2020 was part of the Reform of Vocational Education (RoVE). Its role is to understand the workforce challenges, identify skill needs, set qualification standards and provide a leadership role. The council advises government on what programmes and qualifications they should support and fund.

The council isn’t directly involved with arranging training. This is still the role of Primary ITO, which will formally join Te Pūkenga in October. By the end of this year, Te Pūkenga will become a unified network of all New Zealand's industry training, regional polytechnics and institutes of technology.

We will keep you up to date with the release of the draft training and education plan from Muka Tangata