Mahuta's appointment restores a familiar face to the land. One that the land remembers.

Across her Māori development and associate trade and export growth portfolios, Mahuta demonstrated her proficiency as an expert foundation builder with each piece of work actioned by design. She brought together likeminded countries to regularly meet on issues of importance to Indigenous peoples such as trade, international relationships and intellectual property, built a programme of work to connect Māori and Indigenous peoples to each other as well as to key international markets for Māori business. She brought more Māori voices to trade policy dialogue, developed a plan to measure New Zealand's progress on the articles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and strengthened her bilateral relationships with her international counterparts all toward the goal of enhancing New Zealand's reputation as a progressive and inclusive society. In the process, creating a strong indigenous inspired foreign affairs platform for the future.