On the 19^th July, Toi Kai Rawa, in collaboration with Priority One, hosted the second Social Procurement evening, providing insight to the exciting opportunities in our region over the coming years.

The event saw presenters come together from Toi Moana Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Tauranga City Council, Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and a local Māori businessperson who all gave their perspectives of Social Procurement and how Māori businesses could position themselves in the respective procurement spaces.

The evening attracted sixty enthusiastic business owners and stakeholders from around Tauranga, Rotorua, and Whakatane all interested to learn how Toi Kai Rawa were supporting Māori businesses to navigate government procurement processes to increase supplier diversity.

With the explosive growth in development for the Tauranga CBD over the next eight years and the projected increase in major projects set to inject billions of dollars into our local economy, the room was all a buzz with the possibilities for the advancement of expansion and the creation of a sustainable future for our Māori and Pacifika businesses.

Māori and Pacifika businesses will play a vital role in regional growth so supporting them to prepare for these opportunities at scale, will take a collective approach for the best chance of success for our businesses, while also meeting the significant demand in the region.

Māori procurement isone of Toi Kai Rawa’s strategic priorities across the wider Bay of Plenty Region. For more information, please contact the team at info@toikairawa.co.nz