Alzheimers New Zealand warns the country is "dangerously unprepared", as the number of people living with dementia is projected to more than double by 2050.
Chief executive Catherine Hall is calling for the Government to take urgent action.
About 83,000 people live with dementia, which is estimated to increase to about 170,000 in the next 25 years.
The warning coincided with the release of the World Alzheimer Report 2025, which said investment in community-based "rehabilitative services" was needed to help people living with dementia maintain independence.
Hall said those services already existed through 17 community-based dementia and Alzheimer's support organisations across the country, but were "woefully underfunded and under-resourced", despite keeping people out of the "much more expensive" hospital and aged-care systems for as long as possible.
"What we're calling on the Government to do is to recognise how important these rehabilitation services are for people who want to be able to live independently for as long as possible with dementia and to fairly fund the organisations that deliver them."
She estimated 30,000 - more than a third - of people living with dementia needed help.
"Dementia is a national health emergency and New Zealand still has no funded, implemented plan to deal with it.
"It is a glaring policy gap. We have the chance to learn from international evidence and lead with innovation, but without political will and investment, the health system, the care sector and thousands of New Zealand families will continue to struggle unsupported."
Alzheimers New Zealand asked for an additional $20 million in the 2026 Budget.
She said there had been no increase since 2022, when the Budget allocated $12m over four years for the Dementia Mate Wareware Initiative, which Hall said was "very targeted" and did not quite meet the "widespread unmet need across the country".
She said the additional funding would also support the dementia-related initiatives outlined in the Government's New Zealand Health Plan 2024-27, including:
- Point 5.1.9: Improve the effectiveness of community care to support older people to maintain independence, self-care, and connection with family, whānau and communities.
- Point 5.1.11: Manage the Growing prevalence of dementia by implementing and evaluating the Dementia Mate Wareware Action Plan.
Associate Health Minister Casey Costello said Alzheimers New Zealand had not been ignored. She would attend its summit on Tuesday and talk to the organisation about this.
"The Government has extensive work underway to ensure older New Zealanders are able to live and age well, and receive the right support and care to help them do this.
"We want improvements across the spectrum of care, from prevention, community support and primary care through to the aged-care system, which ranges from home-care services through to dementia and specialist psychogeriatric services.
"We want a real system - one that recognises people can need different types of care at different times - and that provides for better transitions between these levels of care.
"Importantly, it needs to be based on early preventative care in communities, especially as most people want to age at home.
"Dementia is an example of a condition where preventative work is important and successful.
"I'm hoping to be able to say more about the government's approach around ageing well in the next few weeks."
By Pretoria Gordon of rnz.co.nz
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