At least one in 10 New Zealanders is a carer
Carers are people who care for friends, family, whānau and aiga members with a disability, health condition or illness who need help with everyday living.

The care role is often hidden in families and communities, in part because many consider it to be just “what families do”.

Carers are crucial to New Zealand society:

• They enable people to live and participate in their communities.
• They also help reduce dependence on health and aged care systems.

Demand for carers is growing because:

• more people are living longer,
• more people have multiple long-term health conditions, and
• more people are living at home (rather than going into institutional care).

Mahi Aroha - Carers' Strategy Action Plan 2019-2023

Mahi Aroha includes a range of actions that we will help carry out with other government agencies and sector organisations over the next five years. These actions are focused on:

• Recognising carers and their contributions
• Improving the way carers can navigate the support and services available to them
• Supporting the wellbeing of carers
• Helping carers who want to balance their caring role with paid work or study.

The Action Plan includes a new focus on target populations (Māori, Pacific, young and older carers) and a family, whānau, aiga-centred approach will form part of the implementation approach.

Mahi Aroha was developed in partnership with the New Zealand Carers’ Alliance and a cross-government agency working group.

Click to go to plan: Mahi Aroha – Carers’ Strategy Action Plan 2019–2023 (PDF 3.39MB)