MEDIA RELEASE
Rural health leaders are calling for urgent and coordinated action to address what they describe as serious, measurable, and preventable inequities facing rural communities across Aotearoa New Zealand.
Released following the 21st WONCA World Rural Health Conference at Tākina Wellington, the Aotearoa New Zealand Declaration on Rural Health 2026 sets out a national framework for improving rural health outcomes and strengthening rural healthcare systems.
The Declaration warns that rural communities – and particularly rural Māori – continue to face compounding inequities driven by rurality, deprivation, and the enduring impacts of colonisation. It states that decades of health policy and funding decisions made without meaningful rural engagement have widened the gap between policy intent and the realities of rural life.
Hauora Taiwhenua Chairperson Dr Fiona Bolden said rural communities have been raising the same concerns for years, but action has not kept pace.
“Rural communities know what works, but for too long decisions have been made without rural voices at the table,” said Dr Bolden.
“The inequities facing rural communities are not inevitable – they are preventable. This Declaration sets out what needs to happen next.”
The six priority areas for action are:
Speaking on behalf of the Minister of Health, Hon Simeon Brown, the Associate Minister for Health, Hon Matt Doocey, endorsed the strategic direction set out in the calls to action of the Aotearoa New Zealand Declaration. He added that he was heartened to see how closely these align to the work that the Government currently has underway.
The Declaration also calls for policies informed by Mātauranga Māori and Te Tiriti o Waitangi, recognising that rural Māori continue to experience some of the greatest inequities within the health system.
Hauora Taiwhenua Chief Executive Dr Grant Davidson said one of the strongest messages from Rural WONCA was the need for “rural proofing” across all health policy and funding decisions.
“Too often policies are designed for urban systems and adapted later for rural communities,” said Dr Davidson.
“Rural proofing means asking from the start: how will this work for rural people, rural services, and rural health workers?”
Chairperson of the WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice, Dr Pratyush Kumar, said the challenges facing rural communities are similarly being felt internationally.
“To weave a stronger global safety net, our response must move beyond shared declarations into unified structural support. The Declaration calls on governments to invest in and scale solutions already being developed within rural communities, rather than continuing to impose urban-designed systems onto rural setting” he said.
Hauora Taiwhenua says the Declaration is intended to serve as a practical national roadmap for improving healthcare access and outcomes for rural New Zealanders.
ENDS
Media Contact Sajan Patel Communications Coordinator 021 472 556 sajan.patel@htrhn.org.nz
