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Save the Children – NZ-funded project to boost Cambodian horticulture and improve the lives of children and families

Source: Save the Children

A new NZD$12 million multi-year project aimed at increasing household incomes, reducing child labour, and ensuring communities across Cambodia are better off through innovative horticultural practices was announced yesterday afternoon (local time) at an event attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Winston Peters in Phnom Penh.
The Growing Transformative Horticulture (GROWTH) project is funded by the New Zealand Government and Kiwi donors and will be implemented by Save the Children in Cambodia alongside technical partner iDE Cambodia. The project aims to create healthier, more resilient households by increasing farmer incomes, improving nutrition, and creating safer environments for children across Cambodia’s Koh Kong, Kampot, Siem Reap, and Banteay Meanchey provinces.
Over the next five years (2025-2030), the programme will reach 8,000 farming households, 40,000 people and strengthen 700 local institutions and enterprises, with more than 165,000 people set to benefit indirectly.
By transforming Cambodia’s horticulture sector through inclusive, climate-resilient market development, GROWTH aims to ensure that improved livelihoods translate directly into better outcomes for children – supporting families to keep children in school, reduce economic-driven risks, and ensure safer labour practices.
“Children thrive when families are resilient,” Save the Children Cambodia Country Director Reaksmey Hong says.
“By boosting incomes, expanding access to safe farming practices, and embedding child protection and nutrition into agricultural work, GROWTH ensures that economic development leads to real improvements in children’s lives.”
The project builds on the learnings from previous climate-smart agricultural resilience and market linkage programmes funded by the New Zealand Government.
Today’s event – marking the official announcement of the partnership – was attended by Minister Peters, alongside Cambodian government officials, Save the Children Cambodia Country Director Reaksmey Hong and iDE Country Director Kevin Robbins.
New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rt Honourable Winston Peters, said, “New Zealand proudly supports the GROWTH project in Cambodia. The project aims to enhance the horticulture sector, which is vital as a driver of rural prosperity, and builds on over 20 years of agricultural collaboration.”
The programme places strong emphasis on gender equality, disability inclusion and safe community environments. By addressing the systemic barriers that prevent women, youth, people with disabilities and marginalised groups from participating in markets, GROWTH helps households build protective, stable conditions for children.
“GROWTH represents a new generation of agricultural programming – one that not only strengthens markets, but also strengthens families,” says iDE Cambodia Country Director Kevin Robbins.
“Better incomes, climate resilience and inclusive market opportunities create the foundation for safer, healthier futures for children in Cambodia.”
The event was held Saturday 28 November local time. 
About Save the Children
Save the Children works in more than 110 countries around the world, working to create irreversible positive change for and with children. Our vision is a world in which every child attains the right to survival, protection, development, and participation. Areas of work include humanitarian and emergency response, child protection, education and literacy, disaster risk reduction, climate adaptation, and alleviating child poverty.
About iDE
iDE powers entrepreneurs and builds inclusive market ecosystems to help low income and marginalized communities thrive on their own terms. Our SHE team leads gender-sensitive entrepreneurship programs across sectors to support women's economic empowerment and fuel local economies. We work in 11 countries across the themes of agriculture and food systems, climate change and resilience, gender equality, and WASH. 
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Save the Children – Israeli military raids in the West Bank force entire communities into lockdown, keeping children out of school

Source: Save the Children

Israeli military operations have forced entire communities in areas of the northern West Bank into lockdown in their homes, keeping children out of school, jeopardising family incomes and increasing risk of physical violence and child detention from the Israeli military, Save the Children said. 
Save the Children has been forced to halt its remedial education classes and child protection work, including mental health support, in these areas, with no indication of when programmes might be able to resume. This will put critical support out of reach for over 700 children, the child rights organisation said. 
The latest raid follows two years of increased Israeli military use of force in the West Bank, and record attacksby Israeli settlers last month. 
According to OCHA , between 7 October 2023 and 11 November 2025, 995 Palestinians – among them at least 219 children – were killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. 
One in every five Palestinians killed by Israeli forces so far in 2025 across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, was a child, according to the UN . Last week the UN said that more than 12,000 Palestine refugee children remain forcibly displaced in the northern West Bank, unable to return to their homes in Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams camps. 
Ameer-, project co-ordinator for a Save the Children partner organisation working in child rights and education programming in the area, said: 
“What’s happening now in the Tubas area is a systematic assault by Israeli forces and a continuation of the Israeli government’s collective punishment policy. The operation is cutting off children from the key services and supplies they rely on and need, including education and health services. Every child in these areas is being denied the right to an education. 
“At the same time, in these areas, public infrastructure like roads and public utilities are being destroyed, which will delay and prevent the community from easily recovering once the Israeli forces withdraw from the area in the coming weeks and months, shattering their sense of normalcy.” 
Ahmad Alhendawi, Save the Children’s Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, said: 
“Our staff in the occupied Palestinian territory work under incredible pressure to deliver for children. For these children, our education classes represent hope for a future of opportunity, as well as time to learn, play and develop socially – elements of childhood that are critical to healthy development. 
“While attention has been focused on Gaza we must not take our eyes off child rights violations in the West Bank. All children deserve to go to school and have the fulfilling and productive futures it helps to unlock. Education is a right, as is a safe environment. 
“Restrictions on aid, settler violence, demolitions, land confiscation, and the destruction of essential infrastructure including donor-funded infrastructure – are creating a coercive environment that is making daily life unliveable for Palestinian families. The futures of an entire generation are being jeopardised.” 
Save the Children has worked in the occupied Palestinian territory since 1953, with a permanent presence since 1973. Since then, we have worked with partners to help provide quality education, protection for children, early childhood development support, and employment opportunities for at-risk youth. 
As the situation for Palestinian children in the West Bank worsens, Save the Children is continuing its long-term work while also stepping up support to meet growing needs. In response to mass displacement caused by military operations and settler violence, we are prioritising the delivery of essential items and cash support to families, providing mental health care for children, caregivers and frontline workers, and creating safe spaces where children can play and learn.
About Save the Children NZ:
Save the Children works in 120 countries across the world. The organisation responds to emergencies and works with children and their communities to ensure they survive, learn and are protected.
Save the Children NZ currently supports international programmes in Fiji, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Laos, Nepal, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. Areas of work include child protection, education and literacy, disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation, and alleviating child poverty.
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ASB Survey: Easing cycle sparks 15-year high in housing confidence

Source: ASB

  • On net, nearly one-third of respondents say now is a good time to buy property, the strongest result since 2010
  • Majority anticipate further drops in mortgage rates, but house price expectations remain modest
  • Great time for buyers, with lower interest rates and strong housing supply.

Confidence in the New Zealand housing market has risen to its highest level in 15 years, according to the latest ASB Housing Confidence Survey. The survey shows a net 28% of respondents believe now is a good time to buy property, buoyed by the Reserve Bank’s recent cuts to the Official Cash Rate and competitive mortgage rates.

ASB Chief Economist Nick Tuffley says the market is in a “pre-economic recovery sweet spot”, with lower interest rates and an increase in property listings, giving buyers more choice and confidence.

“We’re seeing a unique window of opportunity for buyers – low borrowing costs and high housing supply are creating conditions we haven’t seen in over a decade,” Nick says.

“However, with the Reserve Bank hinting we could be at the end of the easing cycle, the current environment won’t last forever. Buyers who have been waiting on the sidelines may find now is the time to act.”

More than half of respondents (54%) expect home loan rates to fall further, up from 47% last quarter, while relatively few (10%) expect rates to rise. However, house price expectations remain subdued, with just a net 17% of respondents expecting prices to rise over the next year as high inventory continues to weigh on the market.

Nick adds: “We expect house prices to lift gradually as the economy recovers, but the days of double-digit growth are behind us. For now, buyers have the advantage – and that’s a rare position in New Zealand’s housing market.”

The latest ASB Housing Confidence Survey, along with other recent ASB reports covering a range of commentary, can be accessed at the ASB Economic Insights page: https://www.asb.co.nz/documents/economic-insights.html

Results at a glance

Note: net percent is calculated as the percentage of “yes” or “up responses minus the percentage of “no” or “down responses. The ASB Housing Confidence Survey has been conducted quarterly since July 1996. Respondents are asked about their expectations for house prices and interest rates over the next 12 months, and whether it is a good time to buy a property.

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Employment indicators: October 2025 – Stats NZ information release

 

This email was sent by Stats NZ, 8 Willis Street, Wellington, CBD 6011, New Zealand to nz@enz.mil-osi.com


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Health New Zealand’s fixing bid fails – Medical Specialists

Source: Association of Salaried Medical Specialists

The Employment Relations Authority has thrown out an application by Health New Zealand to “fix” the terms of salaried medical specialists.
Health NZ alleged the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists had breached the obligations of good faith such that the authority must fix the terms and conditions in place of bargaining.
The allegations made by HNZ have not been upheld.
ASMS welcomes the Authority’s recommendation in the determination, which states: “There does seem room for further bargaining. The parties are encouraged to participate fully, openly and in good faith to work together to reach a resolution.”
ASMS is ready to resume bargaining immediately.
ASMS executive director Sarah Dalton says: “We are at serious risk of losing significant numbers of senior doctors and dentists due to HNZ’s intractable approach to recruitment, retention and remuneration. In the end it will be patients who continue to miss out on healthcare.
“Health NZ should never have filed this type of litigation. Public money has been wasted. It is now time to get back around the table.”
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Northland News – Awanui flood scheme progress celebrated

Source: Northland Regional Council

Ongoing work on the multimillion-dollar Awanui flood scheme is offering much greater flood protection to Kaitaia and Awanui, helping to safeguard lives and millions in property, the Northland Regional Council says.
Speaking to attendees at an event in Kaitaia today (subs; Friday 28 November) to celebrate progress on the scheme to date, council Chair Pita Tipene paid tribute to those who had helped make the $15 million-plus, multi-year project a success.
“This scheme would not be the success it is without the work and support of previous and current councillors, the many members of the Awanui River Management Liaison Group – including our tangata whenua partners – some dedicated contractors and of course some very generous funding from Central Government.”
Minister for Regional Development Shane Jones – who also spoke at the event – was thanked for his role in facilitating $11.1M of support for the project, which has significantly reduced the amount the local community has had to pay directly.
“This project is a great example of what can happen when central and regional government and our communities work together for the greater good,” Chair Tipene says.
He says the council had assumed responsibility for the scheme 20 years ago and work on the upgrade had begun in earnest with the adoption of the council’s Long Term Plan in 2018.
Work that had been carried out to date included 6km of stopbanks, 5km of benching, 2.2km of spillways, 1.2km of scour protection, 200 metres of timber floodwalls, 750,000 cubic metres of earthworks, 15,000 cubic metres of rock stabilisation, the replacement or upgrading of 24 floodgates and more recently, the installation of an extra span at the Quarry Rd bridge.
While there was still $2.5 million more work planned over the next two years to remove a weak point from scheme on the Lower Whangatane Spillway at Kumi Rd near Awanui, the work to date was already paying dividends.
Chair Tipene says during a catastrophic flood of 1958, floodwaters more than a metre deep had inundated Kaitaia.
During that flood the Awanui River was flowing at 220 cubic metres a second. During a storm in mid-2022 the area had seen up to 320 cubic metres a second flowing down the river – roughly 45 percent more water – but there had been no flooding in Kaitaia.
“The scheme performed well, as designed, potentially saved lives and essentially spared Kaitaia from millions of dollars’ worth of potential damage.” 
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Employment Disputes – Fire and Emergency received calls to 18 incidents during today’s strike

Source: Fire and Emergency New Zealand

Fire and Emergency New Zealand received calls for 18 incidents between 12pm and 1pm today, Friday 28 November, the time of the strike action by members of the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU).
Of these,13 incidents were in areas impacted by the paid firefighters’ strike.
Eight of these incidents were in response to fire alarms that did not result in a fire. The remaining incidents related to two motor vehicle crashes, two confirmed fires, and one request for assistance from an ambulance service.
The confirmed fires were a 1m x 1m scrub fire in Drury extinguished by the Pokeno Volunteer Fire Brigade and a small rubbish fire in Ranui which was extinguished by the occupant.
Our volunteers responded as normal to incidents within their brigade areas.
Deputy National Commander Megan Stiffler thanked New Zealanders for their extra care during the strike hour.
“Thank you also to our more than 11,000 volunteers across the country, and their employers for supporting them to respond over today’s strike hour,” she says.
“I would also like to thank our Operational Commanders and Communication Centre Managers, who contributed to the response.
“We are disappointed that the NZPFU has issued further strike notices for one-hour strikes at 12pm on 5 and 12 December.
“I urge the NZPFU to withdraw these latest strike notices and not issue any more while the Employment Relations Authority is considering our application to provide facilitation.
“This is in the best interests of our people, and New Zealand’s communities.”
Bargaining
“The Employment Relations Authority is currently considering our application to provide facilitation to bring the parties together and work constructively towards a resolution,” Megan Stifler says.
“We don’t see the point in putting the community at risk with this strike while that process plays out. The NZPFU’s recent settlement proposal is three times more than our offer, which was fair, reasonable, and in line with other settlements across the public service.
“Our offer of a 6.2 percent increase over three years would have taken the average senior firefighter remuneration from a range of approximately $80,700-$87,400 to $85,800-$92,900 at the end of the period, excluding overtime and allowances which currently adds an average of $38,800 to annual remuneration. We believe this represents a fair and sustainable increase for our people.
“We value our people, which is why over the past decade average senior firefighter pay has cumulatively increased by 37 percent – more than 10 percent above the average increase for all New Zealand workers.
“We will continue to work in good faith toward a fair and sustainable agreement, which is why today’s action is completely unnecessary,” Megan Stiffler says.
Notes
  • Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union have been negotiating a collective employment agreement for paid firefighters since 16 July 2024.
  • Fire and Emergency’s recent offer amounts to a 6.2 percent increase over three years and compares favourably with equivalent public sector agreements.
  • Fire and Emergency considers the offer is sustainable, balances cost of living pressures being faced by individuals alongside fiscal pressures faced by Fire and Emergency and is consistent with the Government Workforce Policy Statement.
  • The previous 2022 collective employment agreement settlement provided a cumulative wage increase of up to 24 percent over a three-year period for paid firefighters.
  • Fire and Emergency has also been investing in replacing our fleet, with 317 trucks replaced since 2017 and another 78 on order. We are currently spending over $20 million per year on replacement trucks. There is also a significant programme of station upgrades underway, as well as investment in training.
  • For the 2025/26 financial year, Fire and Emergency’s operating budget is $857.9 million. Of that operating budget, 59 percent will be spent directly on the frontline, while another 32 percent is spent on frontline enablers. This means that over 90 percent of Fire and Emergency’s budget is spent on the frontline and the people directly supporting the frontline. 
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Federated Farmers: Unitary council model future-fit, with less upheaval

Source: Federated Farmers

Separating rural and provincial governance from urban councils is the simplest and most effective way to streamline local government, Federated Farmers says.
“Top marks to the Government for kicking off an overdue conversation about cutting back costs, duplication and decision-making roadblocks that plague our current 78 councils,” Sandra Faulkner, Feds local government spokesperson, says.
With release of plans this week to abolish regional councils, the Government wants less bureaucracy and strengthened accountability.
“So does Federated Farmers,” Faulkner says, “but we have a different model that achieves those aims without the need to totally re-write local government legislation.
“Spurred by rising rates, and a diminishing say by rural communities in council matters, Federated Farmers has given these issues a great deal of thought over the last two decades.
“Our model would see a decrease in the total number of local authorities from 78 to fewer than half that.”
New Zealand already has six unitary authorities – councils that perform the functions of both district/city and regional councils – in Auckland, Gisborne, Marlborough, Nelson, Tasman and the Chatham Islands.
“They achieve the single layer of local government Ministers Bishop and Watts are striving for.
“But it doesn’t work optimally when city areas and rural hinterlands with a cluster of smaller towns are jammed in together under one council,” Faulkner says.
“Greater numbers of people live in cities. They have different needs, priorities and ways of interacting with their council than people and business in rural areas.
“Cities can end up dominating unitary councils, and the ambitions of people in provincial towns and rural areas are sidelined.”
Feds is suggesting a unitary structure that separates provincial and rural governance (regional government) from urban governance (municipal councils).
Each council would take on current regional council responsibilities, and current regional councils would no longer exist as separate entities.
Some areas have grasped the practicality and advantages of this set-up, and are already well down the track to taking it up.
In Southland, there’s a proposal in front of the Local Government Commission for an urban focused authority (Invercargill) and one district-focused authority, incorporating Gore and Southland District Councils.
Environment Southland would no longer exist, meaning four current councils become two.
“Calls for Wairarapa’s three councils to amalgamate, and take up the responsibilities of Greater Wellington Regional Council in their own area, are growing louder,” Faulkner says.
“This dovetails with their move to jointly set up their own three waters entity with Tararua under Local Water Done Well – another aspect that works well with the future model of local government Feds wants to see.
“Combined district councils are better placed financially and staff-resource wise to keep delivering stormwater, drinking water and wastewater treatment services in-house.”
In Canterbury, eight councils could become three: a Christchurch City based municipal council and North and South regional councils, each taking on the functions currently done by Environment Canterbury.
Federated Farmers agrees with the Government that decisions on future council structures should be driven locally, by elected representatives.
“But we see problems with completely removing current regional councillors and leaving it up to Combined Territories Boards (CTBs) of mayors to decide the future shape of councils.
“That’s a lot of regional councillor experience walking out the door on the eve of the Government introducing its overhauled resource management legislation – crucial to livelihoods and the environment.
“If voting on the CTBs is based on size of population represented by each mayor, it also risks rural and provincial concerns being sidelined,” Faulkner says.
Federated Farmers says there’s a lack of detail in the Government discussion papers about future delivery of functions currently done by regional councils.
“The likes of flooding, drainage scheme and emergency management are lifeline tasks.
“We can’t just throw loose ideas at the wall on future delivery in the hope something sticks.”
Some existing regional council boundaries are too big to be governed by just one unitary council, Faulkner says.
“We think there’s also room for catchment boards and community boards to take up specialised roles and preserve local input.”
Faulkner says the model Federated Farmers is suggesting would be a smoother transition to the streamlined and efficient sector the Government – and New Zealanders – are looking for. 
“Again, congratulations to the Government for sparking these overdue conversations.
“Federated Farmers and rural communities are champing at the bit to be involved in landing a structure that preserves strong local democracy and accountability, is future-fit and less costly.” 
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Health – Graduate nursing hire improves but falls short for some – NZNO

Source: New Zealand Nurses Organisation

Te Whatu Ora’s hire numbers for this year’s nursing graduates are an improvement, but some new nurses could still be packing their bags for Australia, NZNO student representatives say.
Te Whatu Ora today committed to employing 1800 of 2200 nursing graduates by 30 June 2026. Offers have been made today to 788 graduates, including 416 who graduated as part of the 2025 mid-year cohort.
Graduate and outgoing NZNO National Student Unit chair Bianca Grimmer said the 82% employment rate is a huge improvement on the 52% hired at the end of last year.
“Today's announcement will be a relief for many graduates like me. There had been high levels of anxiety among nursing students after just 45% of the mid-year graduates were hired in July.
“However, it is disappointing that around 600 graduates could be in limbo until they are employed by the middle of next year. How are they supposed to survive in the meantime?
“Te Whatu Ora used to hire graduates straight away and we urge them to return to that process.”
Many students made plans to cross the ditch to Australia after dismal mid-year employment, Bianca Grimmer says. “They know they will get jobs and feel valued in Australia. That's sad when we have nursing shortages all over New Zealand and a health care crisis to fix.”
NZNO National student co-leader Poihaere Whare questioned what would happen to the 400 graduates there are no jobs for.
“We tauira put a lot of work into our degrees and at the end of it we’re hoping to secure a really good job so we can help our people.
“We don’t want new graduates to be forced to find jobs outside of nursing. We need to keep them in nursing and in New Zealand. They are our future nursing workforce.
“I’m aware NZNO is trying to ensure through bargaining that all graduate nurses are offered full employment,” Poihaere Whare says.
A survey of nursing students by NZNO earlier this year found 61.86% of students were considering seeking a nursing job overseas if they were unable to get a new graduate job in Aotearoa New Zealand. (ref. https://www.nzno.org.nz/about_us/media_releases/artmid/4731/articleid/6892/nursing-students-ready-to-walk )
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Environment – EPA makes headway on hazardous substance assessments

Source: Environmental Protection Authority

The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) continues to make progress assessing hazardous substance applications, approving 21 applications in the first quarter of the 2025-26 year.
The first of a new series of hazardous substances quarterly reports shows the queue of applications fell 9 percent from 96 at 1 July 2025 to 87 at 30 September 2025.
During this quarter, the EPA had the lowest number of applications in the queue for new agricultural and horticulture products since early 2022.
The EPA is improving clarity and transparency around application timeframes and processes with quarterly performance reports, says Dr Lauren Fleury, Acting General Manager for Hazardous Substances and New Organisms.
“We’ve been listening to industry, we are making improvements and have achieved good progress in actively reducing the hazardous substance applications queue.
“We are focused on reducing the number of hazardous substance applications by 30 June 2026, including increasing new active ingredient assessments, and we are starting to see the results of a range of changes we’ve made,” says Dr Fleury.
Improvements underway
Dr Fleury says, “So far this year we’ve onboarded 13 new applications staff.
“We’re increasing the use of rapid assessments, including the international regulator rapid pathway.
“We are also updating our risk assessment models used in assessing higher-risk hazardous substances and chemicals that are new to New Zealand.”
Dr Fleury says the EPA is engaging with industry to explore ways to prioritise assessment of substances with the potential to improve economic or environmental outcomes. 
“We acknowledge that improvements are still required in the application queue for substances containing new chemical active ingredients, and this remains a priority area for us.”
Supporting regulatory reform
The EPA is supporting work on amendments to the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 as well as operational improvements to increase efficiencies. 
These changes are aligned with recommendations from the 2024 Ministry for Regulation regulatory review into the effectiveness of the approval path for agricultural and horticultural products.
“We expect even more reductions in the queue of hazardous substance applications over time once all the changes are implemented,” says Dr Fleury.
Hazardous substance quarterly reporting
The EPA has introduced quarterly reporting for hazardous substance applications to increase transparency about the status of applications in the queue.
Read the Hazardous substance applications quarterly report here:  Hazardous-substances-quarterly-report-for-1-July-to-30-September-2025.pdf