5 February 2018
The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is on track to create thousands of jobs says Robert Pigou, the Head of Investment
Management at the Provincial Development Unit.
“As the administrators of the Provincial Growth Fund we welcome scrutiny of our work and discussion about the impact the
PGF is having in New Zealand’s regions,” Robert Pigou said.
“The Provincial Growth Fund will create jobs in the regions, but job creation does not happen overnight. An expectation
otherwise fails to appreciate and understand the fundamentals of project delivery and the fact that work takes time to
scale-up.
“Funding is announced in principle, after which contracts are negotiated and applicants work to secure their co-funding
requirements. In some cases this may take up to six months. Only then will the project receive any funding from the PGF.
“The Provincial Development Unit is proactively releasing information about the work we are doing, including key
measurements like jobs created. These figures are updated as we receive new information and analysis – for example as
projects ramp up delivery. We caution against the selective interpretation of this data without taking into account
wider context.
To date the Provincial Growth Fund has committed to invest in a number of projects including infrastructure like road
and rail, tourism initiatives like the redevelopment of Rotorua’s lakefront, and Te Ara Mahi, a programme to directly
support a range of skills and employment initiatives in the regions.
“As careful stewards of public money we have a duty to ensure that our investments lead to sustained and meaningful
outcomes (including increased jobs) in our regions. For many projects this means funding feasibility and business cases
to test assumptions and to ensure these projects are primed for further funding.
“Initial work done by applicants as part of their submissions to the Provincial Development Unit shows that over 10,000
jobs may be created as a result of PGF investment. This includes jobs created in the construction and delivery of
projects, and across the wider economy.
“The PGF is supporting long term projects and developments and therefore it will take some time to understand the impact
the PGF will have on employment outcomes. Evaluation of the PGF will include economic growth and the number of direct
and indirect jobs created.
“We are working to grow New Zealand’s regions and drive sustainable economic development in our provincial towns and
cities. The focus of the PGF remains to work with provincial New Zealand, especially the surge regions to ensure the
investments being made are improving the lives of local people and making a difference for business, iwi and
communities,” Robert Pigou said.
ends