Wellington, Jul 12 (IANS): New Zealand's newly established graduate program for ethnic communities began on Monday and will span across multiple public agencies.

"New Zealand is growing in diversity," Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities Priyanca Radhakrishnan said while welcoming the first participants of the program.

The Ethnic Communities Graduate Program will provide a pathway into the public service for skilled graduates from ethnic communities while also improving cultural competency across the public sector, Xinhua news agency quoted the Minister as saying.

The program will see 23 graduates start work across 12 agencies, including the intelligence community, as part of the government's response to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terrorist attack on two Christchurch mosques on March 15, 2019, which highlighted the need for more diversity across the public service, she said.

This graduate program aims to inject some cultural understanding into those agencies while also providing pathways for those who often face barriers to employment, according to Radhakrishnan.

New Zealand has over 213 ethnicities represented across the country who collectively speak over 160 languages.

Ethnic communities make up nearly 20 per cent of the national population, and it is important that the public sector reflects that, Radhakrishnan said.

"With these actions, we are laying the foundations for a better future, and a fairer more equitable New Zealand," she added.