Category Archives: New Zealand

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Afghanistans former second vice president, Sarwar Danish

The National Party is demanding answers from Associate Immigration Minister Phil Twyford about the decision to grant residence to a former vice-president of Afghanistan, Sarwar Danish.

Stuff revealed recently that Danish and 13 family members had arrived in New Zealand from Turkey after the Government offered them what Twyford has described as safe haven.

The decision sparked anger and confusion among local Afghans, including a number who served with the New Zealand Defence Force.

An Afghan member of the New Zealand SAS unit based in Kabul from 2009-2012 told Stuff that Afghans who worked with the NZDF should have been prioritised for resettlement not people like Danish, who he said shared responsibility for the collapse of Afghanistans government.

READ MORE:* Afghans in hiding because of service to New Zealand deserve hope, says former soldier* As winter closes in on Afghanistan, a 12-year-old tries to save his family* Former Afghan vice president 'given safe haven' in New Zealand

Its very frustrating that someone from the corrupt leadership of Afghanistan with zero connection to New Zealand has been resettled in this country, when people who directly supported the New Zealand SAS have been left behind, he said.

Another Afghan local who served with the SAS said it was shameful and disgraceful that Danish and his family members had been granted residence when other Afghans who fought alongside our troops had been left behind.

Twyford said in a previous statement that alongside more than 1200 visas issued to Afghans associated with the New Zealand presence in Afghanistan, the Government has also provided safe haven to around 200 Afghans whose lives were at extreme risk from the Taliban, including Sarwar Danish.

Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

Associate Immigration Minister Phil Twyford.

But Nationals foreign affairs spokesman Gerry Brownlee says the Government needs to explain why [Danish] got priority when he was safely ensconced in Turkey and why so many of his family were able to be repatriated with him.

Most Afghans offered resettlement by New Zealand after the Taliban seized power in August were told they could bring only immediate family members with them, including dependent children. Danish was allowed to bring not only his wife and unmarried children but an adult son and two adult daughters with their spouses and children.

The decision to grant residence to Danish and his family appears to have been made by Twyford. As associate immigration minister, he has discretion to approve applications that fall outside Government residence instructions.

Stuff has previously asked Twyford whether it was reasonable that Danish, who was already in a safe country, was granted residence when former soldiers who fought with the NZDF had not been offered resettlement; however, he did not answer the question.

ROBERT KITCHIN/Stuff

National foreign affairs spokesman Gerry Brownlee.

Brownlee said Twyford needed to tell the public if pressure was brought to bear on the Government to grant residence to Danish. If it was just diplomatic pressure from other countries then that would mean that theyve simply caved to someone elses view.

Or was there another particularly compelling reason [why Twyford] made this decision ahead of some of those people who would appear to have a much better claim?

Brownlee said there were many Afghans remaining in Afghanistan under threat of loss of life who were directly helpful to either the New Zealand SAS or the de-mining operation that New Zealand undertook in Bamiyan province.

What was the compelling reason for bringing [Danish]? he said. Is this the first of many failed former Afghan government players who will be heading to New Zealand?

Multiple attempts by Stuff to get comment from Danish were unsuccessful.

More here:

Did Government 'simply cave'? National demands answers over residency decision for former vice-president of Afghanistan Sarwar Danish - Stuff.co.nz

White Island volcano survivor Stephanie Browitt shared photos revealing dramatic improvements to her back after undergoing a series of skin grafts. Video / 60 minutes / Stephanie Browitt

A woman who survived the 2019 Whakaari White Island volcano eruption and lost her dad and younger sister to the tragedy has revealed one common question she's still asked, two years on.

Melbourne's Stephanie Browitt, her 21-year-old sister Krystal, and their father Paul had been on the Ovation of the Seas ship when passengers visited the island on December 9.

They were among 47 people there, touring the island, when the volcano erupted killing 22 people, including 14 Australians, and badly injuring the other 25.

Browitt, who spent six months in hospital after suffering burns to 70 per cent of her body, has been open about her journey to recovery on social media.

And in a new TikTok posted last week, she reflected one of the things people ask her the most why she, her family and the other victims "couldn't jump in the water if it's an island" when the volcano erupted.

"Well as you can see, that's us, circled, on the island that day, at 2.10pm. And the walls are extremely high up, and we are only surrounded by rock. We're nowhere near the jetty, and nowhere near the ocean. We are as inland as you can get and under 140m from the crater," she explained, alongside an image of where the family had been standing before the eruption.

"So my family and I were at the back of that line, and it was only about a two minute walk, we had only just started walking back to the jetty. This is the same camera only 40 seconds to a minute apart, and as you can see the island was already engulfed in ash and dust.

"So we were never, ever, ever going to make it to water. There was literally no chance for the group of 21 people I was with."

Browitt marked the second anniversary of the disaster late last year, writing it had "ripped" her family apart.

"Today's not only the day I survived the unimaginable, it's the day I lost my dad, Paul and sister, Krystal. It's the day that they were taken from us," she wrote in a lengthy Instagram post.

"My accomplishments mean nothing to me knowing they aren't shared with my sister and dad by my side. Every day I question why we couldn't have gone through this extremely hard journey together, why they couldn't be here also.

"So when I think about today, it's filled with very mixed emotions. I'm extremely grateful that I was able to make it back home to my mum, but I'm also heartbroken that only I made it back. We are a family of four, not two. My heart hurts when I remember what I felt that day, but it hurts more not knowing what my dad and sister felt, that I wasn't next to them during their last moments."

WorkSafe charged 13 parties including tour operators and the island's owners with failings in November 2020. All defendants have pleaded not guilty.

See the article here:

Insulting question White Island survivor Stephanie Browitt is asked - New Zealand Herald

A rare historic steam locomotive is being restored to its former glory and is back in Southland after more than a century away.

The 1880 D Class locomotive D6 arriving at Bulleid Engineering in Winton. Photo: Supplied/ Southland District Council

The D Class locomotive D6 was built in 1880 in Glasgow and spent much of its time running on Southland's tracks with New Zealand Railways.

But in 1917, the D6 was sold into private service, first to the Taratu Coal and Railway Company in the Clutha District and then to McDonalds Lime in 1940 where it was in action at its amaru plant.

It moved a bit closer to home in 1965 after being acquired by Ocean Beach Railway, a working heritage railway museum operating in Dunedin.

The Lumsden Heritage Trust has now brought it back to enhance its heritage rail display in the northern Southland town.

Lumsden Heritage Trust chair John Titter (left) and trustee Rob Scott with the 1880 D Class locomotive D6 at Winton. Photo: Supplied/ Southland District Council

Trust chairman John Titter said the locomotive was significant because there were very few left in New Zealand.

"According to the New Zealand Rolling Stock Register there are only seven other Class D locomotives left in New Zealand, of which only two have been restored to running order."

The trust had taken responsibility for the locomotive and applied for funding to restore it, he said.

The 1880 D Class locomotive arrives in Invercargill on Friday. Photo: Supplied/ Southland District Council

In the weekend it arrived at Bulleid Engineering in Winton, where it is set to be restored before being taken to Lumsden.

The engineering company sits next to the former Winton railway track, which the locomotive used to operate on during its time with New Zealand Railways.

The 1880 D Class locomotive D6 is lowered into position at Bulleid Engineering in Winton on Saturday. Photo: Supplied/ Southland District Council

It has been an eventful two years for the Trust, which oversaw the recovery of two V Class locomotives and their coal tenders from the mud at Mararoa Junction near Lumsden just before the pandemic struck in early 2020.

Later that year, an A Class passenger car A199 was recovered from a farm at Wairio. It has since been refurbished and now sits in the Lumsden Railway Precinct to serve as an information kiosk for the trust's static display.

Continue reading here:

Rare steam locomotive arrives back in Southland for restoration - RNZ

AFR

Canterbury will need 10,000 new workers a year to fill the labour gap left by Covid-19, a recent research paper has found. (File photo)

Canterbury will need 10,000 new workers a year to fill the labour gap left by Covid-19 and the New Zealand border which has been closed since March 2020.

This is the finding of Lincoln University researcher Dr David Dyason in a recent paper assessing the labour market response to Covid-19 border restrictions.

The paper stated that while the countrys Covid-19 elimination strategy proved effective in limiting the number and length of lockdowns, and enabling movement of people throughout the country, the closed borders have substantially lowered New Zealands labour intake.

In Canterbury, migration played a prominent role in the population growth at the start of the rebuild programme after the 2011 earthquakes, said Dyason.

READ MORE:* What role will migrant workers play in the future of New Zealand? * Coronavirus: Thousands received wage subsidy payouts from multiple employers* Covid-19: If migration stops, should we stop building?

The 2018 census revealed between 2013 and 2018, there was an inflow of people from other regions in New Zealand that amounted to a net total of 3288. On the other hand, the number of people who came from overseas to settle in the region during the same period amounted to 42,192.

Data from Statistics New Zealand showed a continuation of this trend, with the population growth for the region between 2018 and 2020 being primarily driven by net-international migration, accounting for 80 per cent of population change.

Pre-pandemic labour inflow coupled with lower near-term economic activity created a short-term labour buffer for the region, said Dyason, but this is quickly reducing.

The workforce gap between those retiring or leaving the workforce and new workers entering, is expected to increase annually, and the initial gap would require net inward migration of the working-age population to average at least 10,000 per year.

STUFF

The New Zealand hospitality industry is battling a labour shortage which has been exacerbated by the border closure and the departure of many migrant workers. (Video first published in July 2021)

For a region that relied heavily on the international labour market, the border restrictions as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic could potentially be disastrous if restrictions remain in the long run.

Current patterns in natural population growth will not be sufficient to satisfy the labour demand in Canterbury over the medium term, he said.

But what about those already in New Zealand who are looking to be employed?

According to figures from the Ministry of Social Development, there were 112,056 people on the jobseeker benefit who were work-ready in September last year.

But it is not that simple, said Dyason.

You will never get a 100 per cent employment rate within an economy, that is unheard of. You will always have a segment of the market that is not economically active, and there are many reasons for that.

It could be because there are no jobs in their field of expertise, it could be seasonal unemployment, it could be a lack of skills, etc.

ALDEN WILLIAMS/Stuff

The New Zealand border has been closed to most migrant workers since March 2020. (File photo)

The recent labour market results suggest that capacity within the labour market is shrinking and pressure on relaxing the strict border requirements are needed to support the economy, he said.

Much of the workforce for the next couple of years could be sourced locally, however, the long-term demand for jobs would require sourcing labour from outside the region.

Dyason said as labour supply tightens, the competition between industries to source students and other employees is expected to increase. This would lead to wage and salary increases that in turn will drive up inflation.

Without significant changes in productivity or natural population growth, regions and countries that historically relied on immigration to support the economy are likely to continue to rely on migration as a labour source.

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10000 new workers a year needed to fill labour gap in Canterbury, study finds - Stuff.co.nz

Jacqui Southey is advocacy and research director of Save the Children NZ.

OPINION: Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, childrens commissioner. As my choice of superhero, the childrens commissioner wins every time.

While the others may fight frightening villains in an imaginary world of good and evil, the childrens commissioner is a real superhero championing our childrens rights for more than 30 years.

Since 1989, eight commissioners have taken office, each monitoring, reporting, influencing and acting on issues facing tamariki and young people. From our first, Dr Sir Ian Hassall, through to todays Judge Frances Eivers, every commissioner has worked to promote children as citizens in their own right, urging New Zealand to do better in the ways we regard and treat our children.

And in those three decades, there have been big wins. The repeal of Section 59 of the Crimes Act in 2007, campaigned on by successive commissioners Roger McClay and Dr Cindy Kiro, ended allowable violence against children by prohibiting physical punishment of them for any reason.

GEOFF DALE

Dr Sir Ian Hassall was New Zealands first childrens commissioner, appointed in 1989.

READ MORE:* New Zealand belongs on 'international roll of shame' on children's wellbeing * Judge Frances Eivers appointed as new Children's Commissioner* Mother-of-seven becomes first Assistant Mori Children's Commissioner

Or casting a spotlight on child poverty. During his term, Dr Russell Wills (2011-16) helped establish the Child Poverty Monitor, a collaboration with Otago University and the JR McKenzie Trust, which provides an annual insight into rates of poverty experienced by children, and what it means to their daily lives.

Or the more recent inquiry into the uplift of newborn babies by Oranga Tamariki, led by Judge Andrew Becroft, shedding light on the brutal realities of the state taking a baby soon after birth.

ROBERT KITCHIN/Stuff

Judge Frances Eivers at her pwhiri as the new childrens commissioner, held at Pipitea Marae, Wellington, in November last year.

But behind the headlines and the big wins are the countless hours of researching, negotiating, monitoring, and campaigning that it takes to champion a too-often-marginalised group in society our children.

Part of the success of the role over the years is the strength of the commissioners voice and status. Many have been outspoken, while their power to report directly to the prime minister, with or without invitation, on critical childrens issues, gives weight to their voice.

Sadly, for too many children, abuse, discrimination, poverty, exclusion and violence are part of their daily lives. Many encounter significant problems when it comes to accessing support or justice, and have limited choices of where to turn for help. This is where having a designated champion to share their voice and uphold their rights at the highest level is vital.

CHRIS SKELTON/Stuff

Judge Eivers has replaced Judge Andrew Becroft as childrens commissioner.

The proposed Oversight of Oranga Tamariki System and Children and Young Peoples Commission Bill, currently before a select committee, removes the named role of childrens commissioner and the commissioners authority to report with or without invitation directly to the prime minister on behalf of children. Instead, a new Children and Young Peoples Commission is to be established, run by a board of between three and six members. The bill also removes the investigation powers the current commissioner has over Oranga Tamariki, with a new entity established to take over monitoring.

The argument for the bill is that, through the new commission, advocacy will be strengthened. A sole commissioner is not able to be across the complex and varied issues children are facing in New Zealand. But isnt that like saying a sole prime minister cant lead our country due to the complexity of the issues we face?

The history of our childrens commissioners shows they have consistently been able to tackle serious and complex issues for children, contributing to systemic and lasting change.

Hagen Hopkins/Supplied

Jacqui Southey, advocacy and research director of Save the Children NZ, is involved in the Save the Childrens Commissioner campaign.

Further, despite the proposed bills impact on them, tamariki and young people have not been consulted. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child clearly accords children the right to a voice on issues important to them, and to be heard. Their views need to be represented in shaping a Children and Young Peoples Commission to support children now and into the future.

Thats why Save The Children has launched a call to Save the Childrens Commissioner. Our online petition, launched earlier this month, already has the signatures of thousands of Kiwis, supporting the call to retain the role of a named commissioner with a designated term of office. We also ask that the bill retains the authority of the commissioner to report directly to the prime minister with or without invitation, and that children are consulted before the bill progresses.

If we are serious about making New Zealand the best place in the world to be a child, we must retain this vital champion for our children. Not all superheroes wear capes.

See more here:

Save the children's commissioner, NZ's campaigning superhero - Stuff.co.nz

Footage shows that multiple vehicles were blocking both southbound and northbound lanes. Photo / Supplied

A motorcyclist is in a serious condition following a collision with another vehicle on Auckland's Southern Motorway this morning.

The crash occurred on State Highway 1 around 6.35am.

The motorcyclist has been taken to Middlemore Hospital.

Two southbound lanes and one northbound lane were blocked between East Tamaki Rd and Te Irirangi Rd during the rush hour as people returned back to work today.

All three lanes have now reopened.

A Waka Kotahi NZ Transport agency spokesperson advised motorists to allow extra time as delays northbound between Papakura and Manukau slowly eased.

Southbound traffic began to slowly ease just after 7.30am the agency said.

Camera footage shows multiple vehicles involved, including trucks.

Continue reading here:

Motorcyclist seriously injured in Auckland Southern Motorway crash, lanes reopen - New Zealand Herald

New Zealand recorded its first suspected case of the Delta variant on August 17th, 2021, and, in line with its zero-Covid policy, the government immediately placed the entirety of the country into an alert level 4 lockdown. By the end of the third quarter of 2021, Auckland had spent a total of thirty-five days under level 4 restrictions and a further nine days under level 3 while the rest of New Zealand spent a total of fourteen days in level 4 lockdown. Given the significant limiting of economic activity while under level 4 restrictions, including the prevention of non-essential construction works, it comes as no surprise that in Q3 2021 the New Zealand economy recorded its second-largest quarterly contraction since current records began. According to Stats NZ, the gross domestic product fell to NZD65.6bn ($44.7bn) in Q3 2021, a Q-o-Q fall of 3.7%, and a year-on-year (YoY) fall of 0.3%. Encouragingly, however, this contraction was significantly softer than expected, with the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) initially projecting a quarterly contraction of 7%.

The f restrictions also weighed heavily on construction activity. The value-add of the construction sector fell to NZD4.2bn ($2.8bn) in Q3 2021, a contraction of 9.6% QoQ and 11.1% YoY. A similar, though slightly less drastic, fall was observed in the volume of construction work completed during the quarter, which fell by 8.6% QoQ, and 4.6% YoY. Residential construction completions were relatively more resilient, recording a contraction of only 6.4% QoQ and a growth of 1.2% YoY. In contrast, non-residential completions were down significantly during the quarter, recording contractions of 12.5% QoQ, and 14% YoY. Owing to the prolonged period spent under level 4 restrictions, the value of construction completed in Auckland recorded a far greater decline than either that completed in the rest of the North Island or that completed in the South Island; falling by 11% QoQ, in comparison to falls of 0.4% in the rest of the North Island and a fall of 1.7% in the South Island.

However, the downturn in construction activity in the third quarter of 2021 is likely only to be a temporary setback for the New Zealand construction industry, with the record number of building consents issued in the first ten months of the year indicating a far brighter outlook moving forwards. In the first ten months of 2021, the number of building consents issued rose to 44,539, a 23.5% increase on the 36,052 issued in the first ten months of 2020 and a 21.7% increase in the number of consents issued in the first ten months of 2019. Driving this growth is the intense volume of residential building activity, with consents up 26.1% YoY between January and October 2021 to 40,083 and up 27.5% on the first ten months of 2019. In contrast, non-residential consents increased by 4.5% YoY but were down by 13.8% when compared to the same period in 2019.

GlobalData currently expects the New Zealand construction industry to have recorded growth of 8.1% in 2021 and to record a growth of 7.8% in 2022. However, downside risks to the outlook are relatively significant, including accelerating inflation, rising materials and wage costs and the threat posed by the Omicron variant. The RBNZ increased its official cash rate (OCR) to 0.75% on November 24th, 2021, citing rising price pressures, tightening capacity and above sustainable employment levels. Rising funding costs due to the OCR increase are likely to weigh on demand for greater capacity in those sectors where uncertainty remains elevated, predominantly affecting the commercial sector. The NZ Government postponed the return of quarantine-free travel in response to the spread of the Omicron on the 21st December 2021, in addition to increasing the quarantine period from seven days to ten. Quarantine-free travel was initially to be opened to New Zealanders and visa holders resident in Australia on the 17th January 2022, but this has been postponed until the end of February 2022. This is likely to push back the initially planned border reopening in April, delaying the recovery of the NZ tourism industry and further constraining demand for commercial capacity.

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NZ construction stumbles but residential will support full-year growth - DesignBuild Network

Two of New Zealands most prominent Covid-19 experts have warned that the country is unprepared to prevent the health system from being overloaded by an Omicron outbreak, with likely fatal consequences.

Otago Universitys Dr Nick Wilson and Dr Michael Baker also said it was only a matter of weeks before the highly transmissible variant seeped into the community due to border failures.

Wilson said that despite New Zealands high vaccination rates, the number of adults who had received a booster dose of the vaccine essential for minimising the effects of Omicron remains dangerously low, and noted that the vaccine rollout for children between five and 11 still had not begun.

New Zealand received its first shipment of Pfizers paediatric vaccine only at the weekend, and intends to begin child vaccinations from 17 January, despite some comparable countries beginning their child vaccine rollout late last year.

Omicrons short incubation period also means New Zealands system for identifying and containing new community cases would be much less effective.

Wilson panned the countrys traffic light system which replaced the more stringent alert-level system last year as not fit for purpose with Omicron due to its tolerance for relatively significant social interaction for vaccinated people when Covid is in the community.

Baker agreed, calling for the government to rapidly reinstate an amended version of the alert level system. The traffic light system wont help us very much because it was never designed to dampen down transmission, it was only designed to nudge people towards vaccination, Baker said.

Until these weaknesses were fixed, he said, we need to hugely turn down the tap of people arriving in New Zealand. Wilson agreed: The priority is to have a tighter border so that we dont have to vaccinate kids and conduct a booster program during an outbreak.

The pair called for a significant tightening of the number of New Zealanders entering the country.

Over the weekend, 64 positive Covid cases were recorded within New Zealands oversubscribed managed isolation facilities (MIQ) for incoming travellers, many of which were expected to be Omicron.

Wilson said he was perplexed that poor ventilation and shared spaces within MIQ had not been fixed and that the resulting high risk of an Omicron outbreak was unacceptable.

To relieve the pressure on MIQ, Wilson said, the government ought to require rapid antigen testing for travellers immediately prior to allowing them on flights, and cap the number of travellers coming from high-risk countries such as the UK, where Omicron rates have skyrocketed.

Such measures would be controversial. The government is facing significant pressure from advocacy groups like Grounded Kiwis to make it easier for overseas New Zealanders to return home. The countrys borders have been shut since March 2020.

Spokesperson Martin Newell said Grounded Kiwis strongly agreed with universal rapid antigen testing for travellers and strictly limiting travellers exposure to each other. However, he emphasised that you cant deny the right of New Zealanders to be able to return to their country.

Wilson, however, said: The priority for the government has to be on protecting the 5 million New Zealanders in New Zealand.

The Covid-19 response minister, Chris Hipkins, has been approached for comment.

Here is the original post:

New Zealand not prepared for Omicron outbreak expected in matter of weeks, experts warn - The Guardian

Last year was New Zealands hottest year on record, according to the countrys National Institute of Water and Aeronautic Research (NIWA), and seven of the past nine years are among New Zealands warmest ever. The countrys steadily rising temperature brings increased risk of major floods, bushfires and storms.

According to NIWA, New Zealands average temperature in 2021 was 13.56 degrees Celsius. Its the highest average NIWA has recorded since it began its seven-station annual temperature series in 1909, and breaks the previous record set in 2016 by 0.11 degrees.

The increases wont end anytime soon without significant action on climate change, said Victoria University of Wellingtons Dr Nathanael Melia. Every year we spin the roulette wheel of weather variability; however, like a casino, we have rigged the game, and the hothouse always wins in the end.

Dr James Renwick at the same university said: We can expect more and more of the same in future the record high temperatures we have just experienced would be counted as a cold year by the 2040s.

Heightened temperatures cause more extreme weather, says Renwick. For example, higher temperatures means the atmosphere holds more moisture, which causes more severe flooding in some regions.

In July 2021 heavy rain engorged the West Coasts Buller River, accelerating its flow to 10 times its normal rate the highest recorded in a New Zealand river since 1926. The resulting flood devastated the town of Westport. Many residents had to be evacuated after hundreds of houses were inundated, causing an estimated NZ$132m in damage. Development West Coasts chief executive, Heath Milne, expects the rebuild to take up to two years.

Higher temperatures also mean other regions will become dryer, according to Renwick, causing more frequent bushfires.

SCION, New Zealands forestry research service, estimates that the number of days of very high or extreme fire risk will double or triple in coming years. Firefighters in New Zealand are currently on their 26th day of fighting a major bush fire in the Far North District.

These changes are typical around the world, says Renwick. These are all symptoms of the way the climate is changing, and New Zealand is no different from other countries in that respect.

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2021 was New Zealands hottest year on record - The Guardian

Universities and colleges are worried that the border opening to foreign nationals in April will have little effect on international student mobility due to the visas being on processing hold until August.

They need this confirmation now if they are going to be able to arrive in time for our universities second semester

Although the government has said it will begin a staged reopening of the border to fully vaccinated foreign nationals from April 30, international university students wanting to start, continue or finish studies in person need to know when after April 30 they can enter, Chris Whelan, Universities New Zealand Te Pkai Tara chief executive, told The PIE News.

Three cohorts of border exceptions totalling 1,550 international university students have been granted to date but most of Aotearoa New Zealands existing and prospective international students remain offshore, uncertain, he added.

Independent Tertiary Education president Craig Musson told RNZ in a report that its member institutions were entirely reliant on foreign enrolments, especially English language schools.

He also warned that some members could be facing a third consecutive year with no new students from abroad.

It generally takes about five months for them to satisfy visa requirements and organise travel and everything else necessary to live in New Zealand, so they need this confirmation now if they are going to be able to arrive in time for our universities second semester in June and July, Whelan continued.

However, the University of Aucklands acting director of international operations told The PIE that visa processing isnt the main barrier for students wanting to enter the country.

The uncertainty around timing and isolation process for entering the country [is the main barrier], said Ainslie Moore.

When students offshore are granted a border exception they apply for a visa then a spot in MIQ [Managed Isolation and Quarantine] visa processing for these students has been smooth and timely, but access to MIQ is constrained.

Some eligible students with visas in hand are still without an MIQ spot, she added.

This aligns with the views of immigration and education agent Arunima Dhingra, who said there was too much confusion about when and how borders would reopen to students.

At this stage you go through one hoop and you get stuck on the other, she said.

The pandemic and its impact on border management continues to be the biggest challenge for our students, Moore confirmed.

The issues follow a proposed new framework whereby the sector will put less emphasis on residency and work rights and more on providing high quality courses and high-value international education.

Our government has made some significant transitions to how and where we process offshore visa applications, and is also rolling out a new information system in 2022, Brett Berquist told The PIE News.

While we are watching carefully, we believe these will be positive changes for international education in New Zealand, the former director of international at The University of Auckland added.

Another issue looming is rumbling calls for longer student visas, as some PhD students were reportedly worrying about spending time and money on getting extensions.

Applying for a visa can be time-consuming, and it is understandable students want to avoid the admin burden, Moore concurred.

In New Zealand, most international students only obtain a visa for their first year at the institution which is, in most cases, the duration of which tuition has been paid.

Once this has passed, a renewal is then necessary for a subsequent to be applied for by the student for the next duration of their study.

The purpose of the visa renewal is for Immigration New Zealand to ascertain that students continue to meet their visa requirements, Moore explained.

These requirements include health, evidence of supporting funds and tuition payments.

Ali Khan, a doctoral candidate at the Victoria University of Wellington, told RNZ that the hassle of police and health checks caused emotional and financial stress.

It causes an extra incremental pain point for PhD students who are also not in an extended program, Khan said.

While Moore told the PIE the checks were necessary, she agreed that changes may be necessary.

The pandemic and its impact on border management continues to be the biggest challenge

While this is important, longer duration visas would be helpful for all students, including doctoral candidates who may take a little longer to complete, she concluded.

All round, universities and institutions insist that they are supporting their international students in any way they can.

We know this is hard, so were supporting students to study online till travel is possible, including through innovative offerings like our PG STEM offer in India, Moore added.

As well as working hard towards [getting students into NZ], New Zealands eight universities are advising and supporting both existing and prospective international students during this difficult time, Whelan said.

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New Zealand: visa processing creating uncertainty among tertiary institutions - The PIE News