Major review finds governments failing to meet Closing the Gap commitments, as peak body calls for renewed efforts to existing commitments and a dedicated self-determination fund

The Joint Council on Closing the Gap met for the first time since the referendum held on 14 October 2023 on the principle of recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the Constitution through a Voice.

The Productivity Commission today released a draft of its first review of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (National Agreement). The Productivity Commission has been commissioned by Australian governments and the Coalition of Peaks to undertake three yearly reviews of the implementation of the National Agreement with a focus on analysing progress of government commitments against the four Priority Reforms. 

The data update for the Closing the Gap Dashboard, released today, provides a new year of data for several socio-economic targets and supporting indicators within the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (National Agreement). These targets paint a grim picture and emphasise the need for all governments to urgently implement the National Agreement in full.

In a historic moment under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, today the Australian Government will release its second Closing the Gap Implementation Plan, alongside the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations (Coalition of Peaks) annual Implementation Plan.

The Productivity Commission’s latest paper published as part of its Review of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, Review Paper 3 – What we have heard to date, highlights the urgent need for governments to fulfil their commitments on the agreement’s implementation.

The ninth meeting of Joint Council on Closing the Gap was held on Gadigal Country (Sydney) today, with representatives of the Coalition of Peaks attending alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs ministers from all jurisdictions and a representative from the Australian Local Government Association.

The Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations (Coalition of Peaks) has released its first Annual Report, outlining progress to implement the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (National Agreement).

The eighth meeting of Joint Council on Closing the Gap was held in Adelaide today, with representatives of the Coalition of Peaks attending alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs ministers from all jurisdictions and a representative from the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA).

Pat Turner AM, Lead Convener of the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations (Coalition of Peaks) and one of Australia’s most prominent Indigenous leaders, is working with all Australian governments to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, signed in 2020.

The Closing the Gap Annual Data Compilation Report, released today, provides new information for nine socio-economic targets within the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. The assessment of these targets paints a mixed picture, and emphasises the need for more resources to finally Close the Gap in life outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

As Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, we have been saying for a long time that we need to have a much greater say in how programs and services are delivered to our people, in our own places, and on our own country. The Australia State of the Environment Report 2021, released last week, reiterates the importance of this.

This National Reconciliation Week, Australians are challenged to be brave and make change. Members of the Coalition of Peaks have been doing change-making work in and for their communities for more than 50 years.

More than 70 representatives of the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations (Coalition of Peaks, Peaks) met in Naarm on 4-5 May 2022.

Members of the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations (Coalition of Peaks) will meet in Melbourne this week to take stock of progress being made on the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.   

The Coalition of Peaks representatives attended the sixth meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap today, the meeting focused on the parties Implementation Plans. These plans outline the tangible actions that are to be taken to advance the four Priority Reforms and achieve the socio-economic outcomes committed to under the National Agreement.

The Coalition of Peaks, the collective voice of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled sector, are today proud to announce the public release of their first Implementation Plan under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. All Parties to the Agreement are responsible for publishing implementation plans that are responsive to the differing needs, priorities and circumstances of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, communities and organisations across Australia.

The Coalition of Peaks today welcomed the Prime Minister’s announcement of more than $1billion over five years of new funding measures to close the gap in life outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia. The announcement comes as the Prime Minister tabled in Parliament the first Commonwealth Implementation Plan outlining how the Australian government will meet its commitments under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.

Significant Budget measures announced by the Commonwealth Government provide a foundation for investing in the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. As expected, detailed funding relating to Closing the Gap was not announced in the Budget last night, so the full scope of funding commitments remains to be seen.

The Joint Council on Closing the Gap met today and agreed that joined-up work between all governments in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representatives is critical to reducing the rate at which Indigenous people are incarcerated.