Māori businesses are overwhelmingly confident about the future, but financial literacy and lack of resources remain barriers to achieving their goals, according to a new report.
Despite the pandemic, 96 percent of Māori business owners are confident of success in the next 12 months. (File image) Photo: 123RF
Accounting firm BDO's third annual Pūrongo Pakihi Māori - Māori Business Sector Report shows Covid-19 has led to a greater focus on the shorter term to complement the long-term planning.
BDO Māori sector leader Angela Edwards said there was also more focus on financial planning.
"It's great to see an increased focus on financial planning among our Māori business community - a silver lining in response to the short to mid-term business pressures brought about by Covid-19," she said.
Despite the pandemic, 96 percent of Māori business owners are confident of success in the next 12 months.
However, they also continue to face barriers.
"Barriers that we saw coming through was financial literacy," Edwards said.
"A lot of people have learnt their financial knowledge through experience so it's about ensuring that there are programmes out there and training and advice that's suitable for our Māori business owners and our small business owners that's accessible to them."
The other prominent barrier was the lack of resources relating to skilled Māori employees, she said.
"Because what's happening is they are so highly sought after, that the government is picking them up and corporates are picking them up and SMEs can't compete with the salary packages that are being offered."
The latter was one of the key challenges Māori businesses face in the new future, Edwards said.
Achieving intergenerational wealth was high on the list of things Māori business owners wanted in the long term, she said.
The number of respondents saying they considered their business to be environmentally sustainable had also grown from 9 percent to 88 percent.
But half did not report on Environmental Social and Governance outcomes, although more than two-thirds said they would use a reporting tool if it was available.
