Pasifika people of all cultures and faiths have a new place to gather, learn, and celebrate, with the opening of the Pasifika Community Centre at Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT) on Friday 3 June, 2016.
The Pasifika Community Centre was officially opened by Hon. Steven Joyce, Minister of Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment, and Hon. Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga, Minister for Pacific Peoples, at a ceremony attended by Pasifika delegates, MPs, community leaders and MIT staff and students.
Dr Stuart Middleton, Director of External Relations at MIT, says opening the Pasifika Community Centre is “an integral part of MIT’s commitment to Pacific people, and to enabling Pasifika to succeed as Pasifika.”
“We want the community to make this new place, their place,” he says.
“With this centre, we hope to supplement the facilities that churches offer by creating spaces that go across faith and island groups. It is a place for all Pasifika.”
The Pasifika Community Centre hosts spaces that can be used for many purposes, and in most cases will be free of charge. It has spaces for meetings of all kinds, quiet social activity, welcoming special people to the community, and special educational events such as lectures.
Seiuli Terri Leo-Mauu, Manager Pasifika Development at MIT, says the centre is about transforming the Pasifika community in South Auckland.
“It’s a sanctuary for everyone in the Pasifika community, young and old,” she says.
“Pasifika people need this space. There are currently no other freely available, inexpensive venues for people to come together and connect with their culture.”
The centre has meeting rooms equipped with the latest technologies – videoconferencing, smart boards, and data-show equipment – and one large meeting hall which seats 100 people. It has areas for craft work, and a dedicated Faith Room and office for local church pastors and ministers.
South Auckland is home to one of the largest Pasifika communities in the world, with more than 110,000 Pacific people living in the Manukau region, making up 21% of the local population. 35% of MIT’s students are Pasifika, compared with the national average of 13% .
The Pasifika Community Centre is located at MIT’s North Campus, Gate 12, Otara Road, Ōtara. Bookings for the centre are open, and can be made through the MIT Pasifika Community Centre Office via mitpcc@manukau.ac.nz.
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