A Maori leader says a partnership between iwi and the Crown to build a home for kaumatua shows the Treaty of Waitangi is working.
The facility for elders was officially opened in Flaxmere in Hawke's Bay on Friday. It whare is across the road from a library, a swimming pool, and shops.
Most of the $2 million project has been paid for by Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga charitable trust with help from Government loans and grants.
Former chief executive Alayna Watene says Maoridom has come of age through education, and leaders can make gains for tangata whenua.
She says through a treaty partnership, there's no master and servant.
Ms Watene says the Crown-iwi bond means everybody's aspirations are fulfilled and there's mutual respect.
