Have Your Say: NZOKDA Strategic Plan 2026–2032

Every year at the AGM the same questions come up — what should we do with the money in the association account, and where should the class be heading? With the new Incorporated Societies Act also bringing tighter governance requirements, the committee has decided it's time to stop having the same conversation on repeat and set a proper strategic direction — one the whole membership has had a real say in shaping.

We're in a good position to do this. The class is stable, we've got active fleets, Kiwis competing at world championships, a new constitution in place, and healthy reserves in the bank. What we don't have is a plan for what that money should actually do — right now it sits in an account earning very little.

The committee has drafted a six-year roadmap built around a simple idea: treat our reserves as permanent capital, invest them, protect them, and each year spend only the income they generate. Membership subs would continue to cover the association's day-to-day running costs. The investment income would fund the things we think grow the class — professional photo and video coverage at local regattas, support for host clubs, a contribution toward Kiwis shipping to overseas Worlds, and coaching in the regional fleets. The overall goal is to lift active participation to 50+ sailors and build toward the 2029 Napier Worlds as our biggest growth moment.

There's another option worth mentioning, because it comes up regularly: whether the association should use its reserves to buy boats or masts and lend them out to grow numbers. It's a genuine question, and the survey asks about it directly. The committee's honest view is that this would consume much of the fund in one go — money that, once spent, no longer produces income to support events, coverage or Worlds shipping year after year. The investing path helps every sailor at every regatta, every year; the equipment path helps a small number of sailors once. But this is exactly the kind of decision the membership should have a say in, so please tell us what you think.

The draft plan and members survey can be found can be found here

If you sail an OK, you have a stake in this. Please read the roadmap, complete the survey, and come to the general meeting where the final version will be put to the class for adoption. Nothing is decided yet — this is your chance to shape it.

Please complete the survey by 18 September, 2026