Andrew Natsios, head of the U.S. Agency for International Development, calls this aid "a form of occupational therapy" that will help them deal with the state of shock. Natsios: "It also puts money in people's pockets ... and we want to do that to begin to bring local markets back." The cash-for-work programs are a new approach in emergency aid, replacing handouts from trucks, and temporary clinics that eventually leave, with long-haul efforts that involve community leaders, who set their own rebuilding priorities.

"The relief instinct is to just go in and hand out as much as possible to as many people as possible," says Randolph Martin, Mercy Corps' director of global emergency operations. "But what we do in an emergency could undermine reconstruction if we're not careful ..."

Source — The Kansas City Star, 17 January 2005, "Indonesians deal with economic devastation" by Beth Gardiner, Associated Press; The Philadelphia Inquirer, 16 January 2005, "Restoring human ties to nature" by Don Steinberg; Fairfax NZ Ltd, 16 January 2005, "Tsunami zone begins slow revival" Reuters; Cape Argus, 17 January 2005, "Wave of poverty in tsunami wake" Reuters; Bangkok Post, 18 January 2005, Occupancies headed for single digits" by Nondhanada Intarakomalyasut;

New Zealand has 113 Defence Force personnel in the region. Two Air Force Hercules are working alongside the Australian Defence Force in Sumatra. An air force 757 is also working in the region, providing airlift support, a New Zealand medical team is also working with Australian troops in Banda Aceh, and 25 New Zealand police and civilian staff have been deployed to the international disaster victim identification operation in Thailand.

It was only at the end of the following week, when the death toll was heading past 100,000 and the US contribution was starting to look feeble compared to the rest of the world, that the administration multiplied it tenfold and sent in the marines. The president also enlisted his two predecessors, George Bush Snr and Bill Clinton, to launch a major private fundraising appeal.

President Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell have bristled at the "stingy" remark, and Powell declared that Americans were "the most charitable group of people on the face of the earth". It seems that most Americans believe it. A recent poll found that most Americans believe that their country spends 24% of its Budget on aid to poor countries.

The UN figures tell a different story: The US gave 0.14% of its gross national income in official development assistance in 2003, putting it last on a table of 22 rich industrialised nations. New Zealand gives 0.24%. Only the Scandinavian countries give anything close to 1% of their income.

Source — The Guardian Weekly 7 January 2005 "How a mild-mannered official spurred mean America into action" by Julian Borger

Opportunity is the government's follow-up to the state of social wellbeing outlined in The Social Report 2004 (see Special Feature The Jobsletter No. 213). It is broadly structured around the 10 domains of social wellbeing — knowledge and skills, employment, economic standard of living, health, social cohesion, safety, civil and political rights, national identity, leisure and recreation, physical environment. It identifies key objectives and maps central government activity for each domain.

The report identifies five critical social issues as priorities for interagency action over the next three to five years:

Opportunities: "This isn't a task for the Government alone. Individuals and their families, neighbourhoods, communities, iwi, and the business and local government sectors all have roles to play. Achieving these goals will mean all New Zealanders have the opportunity to fulfil their potential, prosper and participate in the social, economic, political and cultural life of their communities and nation.

The report says it is best read alongside Sustainable Development for New Zealand — the government's overarching programme of action for a sustainable future and The Growth and Innovation Framework, which sets out a strategy for economic development.

— Opportunity for all New Zealanders, 16 December 2004, published by the Ministry of Social Develpment, can be downloaded (Word 89pg, 1.63mb — also available in pdf) from here

Source — Press release, NZ Government, Steve Maharey 16 December 2004 "Opportunity for all New Zealanders"; Press release, Child Poverty Action Group 5 January 2005 "Social Policy for an Inclusive New Year?". The Independent, 22 December 2004 "Great news for Christmas" by Bob Edlin.

Some employers are concerned that school leavers are unaware of the opportunities that lie within the trades. Engineering firm The Walker Group chief executive Mark Hosie says schools are failing to deliver the right information to school leavers about career choices. Hosie: "Schools have lost sight of their main purpose, which is to prepare young people for the workforce. Emphasis is placed on traditional university training or `glamour' fields, such as information technology or graphic design. The trades have an image problem which schools are not doing enough to rectify."

Source — Southland Times, Invercargill 11 January 2005 "Trade jobs `deprived'; School bias alleged by Eileen Goodwin.

One student who did not want to be named told the Christchurch Press he was dismayed to find a non-achieved mark in one of his subjects not recorded on his report. The student: "This new qualification is meant to give more information to employers but in my opinion it is not giving half as much information as it only highlights the good and does not show the bad."

Source — Dominion Post, Wellington 11 January 2005 "Schools need hundreds of teachers" by Sophie Neville; New Zealand Herald, 17 January 2005, "Two weeks until school starts, 350 teachers short" by Stuart Dye.

But New Zealanders aren't going without. Bank of New Zealand chief economist Tony Alexander says that New Zealanders, instead of earning enough to afford the lifestyle they want, go into debt in order to buy the luxury items people in richer nations have. As a result, New Zealanders have the worst savings rate (-10%) in the OECD.

Why aren't New Zealand workers paid more? Alexander speculates that New Zealand has a generally "acquiescent" workforce. Alexander: "One explanation for generally low wage growth in the past 10 years is the work force not demanding it — probably because of the memories of really high unemployment. It was pretty bad in the early `90s and late `80s. There's a hangover from that which has made people reluctant to chase after the big money. We have preferred job security." He says this could change with the tightening labour market.

Source — The Timaru Herald, 14 January 2005, "NZ pay `falling behind' by Tracy Watkins".

The government has raised the minimum wage by 36% since it took office in 1999 and Wilson points out that, contrary to employer's warnings, raising the minimum wage hasn't deterred employers from hiring.

Source — The Dominion Post, 22 December 2004, "Low hourly pay rate to rise" — NZPA; Green Party media release 22 December 2004 "New minimum wage rise far too little — Bradford".

So far, 107 (mostly Vietnamese or Indonesian) fishing crew who jumped ship in the past year remain at large. Their number is well overshadowed by the 20,000 overstayers in New Zealand.

Source — Sunday Star-Times December 26 2004 "Delayed reaction to ship-jumping workers" by Tim Hume.

Source — Press release, NZ National Party, John Key, 10 January 2005 "NZers work harder to keep state sector going"; Weekend Herald, Auckland 8 January 2005 "National hammers spending blowout" by political reporter Kevin Taylor.

National MP Bill English says this will affect around 6,000 students and he estimates they will have to take out an extra $30 million in student loans to cover their living costs. English: "Students who work to support themselves and pay their way through tertiary study should be encouraged, not punished. These students generally have less debt, more idea of what to study and a greater incentive to finish. It's ridiculous to think that parents will continue to provide total financial support to their children who have been out of home and in the workforce for two years, let alone their married children."

Source — Press release, ACT Party, Deborah Coddington, 10 January 2005 "Average student loan debt skyrockets"; Press release, New Zealand National Party, Bill English, 10 January 2005, "Govt robs students of their independence".