Customary Research

The customary research funding was initiated as a result of establishing the Customary Fisheries Regulations. To address provisions in the Customary Fisheries Regulations, Maori requested funding to research traditional and oral information related to customary gathering and traditional practices with regard to mahinga mätaitai and tauranga ika. The customary research fund is available for tangata whenua who are working towards registering or are registered kaitiaki/tangata tiaki under the Kaimoana Customary Regulations 1998 and the South Island Customary Regulations 1999.

Customary research is not allocated by a competitive tendering process, rather via a call for proposals, and funding is from a Crown fund targeted at the following areas:

i. Study of traditional fishing histories;

ii. Historic take levels;

iii. Traditional fishing methods; and

iv. Effectiveness of customary management measures.

To be eligible to submit a Customary Research proposal you must first register your interest with the Ministry. To learn how to become a registered research provider go to the Registration of Interest page.

Call for Proposals:

The call for proposals for the next financial year is usually held in the first quarter of the immediate calendar year.

Developing a submission:

The Ministry has developed a pamphlet to guide tangata whenua through the customary research process. This pamphlet can be downloaded below.

The Ministry’s Extension Service Team (Pou Takawaeanga) and Customary Relationship Managers (Pou Hononga) are available to assist groups or individuals in preparing and targeting their proposal to ensure the best chance of funding. Contact details for the Pou Takawaenga and Pou Hononga are available in the customary research pamphlet or through the link below.

 Customary Research Guide (PDF 1MB)
Please note: this is a large file and may take some time to download.

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