Annual Report for the Year Ended 30 June 1999

• Our Vision
• Principal Functions
• Chief Executive's Overview
• The Way Forward
• Key Achievements
• The Ministry
• 1998/99 Financial Performance
• References

Annual Report for the Year Ended 30 June 1999

The Ministry

Values and Principles

The mission for the Ministry of Fisheries is reflected in its Maori name - Te Tautiaki i nga tini a Tangaroa - the guardian of the multitudes of Tangaroa.

In our Five Year Strategic Plan, we noted that, as part of the process to earn respect as the guardians of the multitudes of Tangaroa, the Ministry would need to develop an organisational culture based on the following values and principles:

Public Service

We will create an environment in which our people can be proud to be part of the New Zealand public service and can maintain the highest level of professional behaviour.

This means:

• fulfilling our lawful obligations to the Government with professionalism and integrity;
• performing our official duties honestly, faithfully and efficiently, respecting the rights of the public and our colleagues; and
• not bringing our employer into disrepute through our private activities.

Treaty Issues

As a Ministry, we recognise the status of Maori as tangata whenua and will continue to develop and maintain processes and practices that are consistent with:

• the responsibilities of the Crown in relation to the Treaty of Waitangi; and
• our specific legal obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi (Fisheries Claims) Settlement Act 1992 and the Fisheries Act 1996.

Such practices will become an accepted and integral part of all aspects of our activities supported through our organisational culture and will underpin all of our values.

Earning respect also means integrating specific behavioural values into our day-to-day work - both internally with each other and externally in our relationships with our stakeholders and the general public. Our behavioural values are:

• Leadership
  We will develop effective and innovative means to allow people to contribute to and support the ability of MFish to deliver on its mission.
• Relationships and People
  We will develop, internally and externally, constructive and collaborative relationships built on trust.
• Working in Teams
  We will share information and knowledge through superior teamwork and networking.
• Achieving Results
  We will create an organisation that encourages and recognises contribution and dedication to our mission and outputs.

Organisational Capability

The Ministry's organisational key result area is to:

• Retain and develop the capacity and resources necessary to deliver high quality outputs while, at the same time, limiting any risk to the Crown.

Good Employer

The Ministry is required under section 56 of the State Sector Act to operate human resource policies that comply with the principles of being a good employer. During the year, we:

• maintained our health and safety procedures;
• maintained our Employee Assistance Programme; and
• developed policies relating to:
• sexual harassment;
• stress management;
• recruitment;
• remuneration systems.

Human Resources

The main focus of the human resources function within the Ministry for 1998/99 has been the change management processes associated with the outsourcing of registry services. This has meant that a number of other areas such as industrial relations, progression of the Values and Principles, and a Ministry Code of Conduct have been deferred, until the completion of the management contract.

Partnership

The Ministry recognises the status of Maori as tangata whenua and has developed human resource processes and practices that are consistent with the responsibilities of the Crown as a partner to the Treaty of Waitangi. Over the last 12 months, we have increased our number of appointments of Maori staff from 9 per cent to 19 per cent. This is a significant overall improvement from 2 per cent of appointments reported in 1996/97 and is due to a combination of factors, particularly:

• our participation with other agencies in the Mauriora ki te Ao scholarship programme; and
• the recruitment of fisheries compliance staff to support customary fisheries compliance initiatives.

In addition, we have introduced a Treaty Awareness training initiative. This initiative is designed to provide all Ministry staff with a general overview of the Treaty and its application to fisheries management. This is seen as an essential part of providing all staff with the capability to operate in the environment.

Risk Management

The Ministry has an annual risk management programme and advocates an open approach for resolving risk issues. Staff are encouraged to report all situations where they perceive the Ministry could be at risk and to suggest solutions to resolve/mitigate the risk.

A series of policies and procedures has been developed for the guidance of all staff. These will be expanded in the coming year and kept up to date through a cyclical review process.

The Ministry has adopted a fully integrated management strategy to deal with risks associated with the year 2000. Our biggest risk, the Quota Management System, has been substantially successfully tested and implemented. Other projects are on track and it is expected that all important systems and procedures will have been tested by the end of September 1999.

A major milestone for the Ministry in 1998/99, consistent with our strategy, was the outsourcing of fisheries registry services.

As noted earlier in this report, the Ministry has entered into a contract for the delivery of registry services. The contract details were largely completed during the year ended 30 June. The contract was signed over the period 22 and 23 July 1999.

A significant risk for the Ministry was the need to maintain an uninterrupted registry services delivery during the transition period from a full Ministry service to one that is to be devolved to quota owning organisations in the future. This was achieved successfully.

The transition arrangements for staff were particularly well received. A total of 68 staff have transferred to Datacom Employer Services Ltd, CFS's sub-contractor. Ten staff have not been placed in either the Ministry or Datacom. The transition process has been identified by the State Services Commission as a reference point for future transitions within the public service.

Ministry Structure

Chief Executive
Wellington

Policy Advice
Wellington

Operational Advice
Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, Dunedin

Government Service Specification and Purchasing
Wellington

Enforcement of Fisheries Policies
Whangarei, Auckland, Tauranga, Gisborne, Napier, New Plymouth, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, Chatham Islands, Dunedin, Invercargill

Prosecution of Offences
Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, Dunedin

Fisheries Services
Wellington

Administration of Crown Receipts and Payments
Wellington

Biosecurity (Fisheries)
Wellington

Corporate Development
Administration
Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, Dunedin
Finance, Legal, Human Resources,
Communications,
Information Management,
Risk Management
Wellington