2016-03-17
A committee report into the chaotic rollout of the Indigenous Advancement Strategy (IAS) and its impacts on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples has been tabled in the Senate.
Australian Greens Senator Rachel Siewert initiated the year-long inquiry and said that many Aboriginal service providers will be glad to see the report tabled with recommendations on how to improve the delivery of the strategy.
“Under Mr Abbott's leadership over half a billion dollars was ripped from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander funding. Under Abbott-Turnbull leadership, the roll out of the new Indigenous Advancement Strategy has caused incredible stress to the Aboriginal community and service providers at a national scale.
“Government’s refusal to provide a list of organisations completely defunded made it hard to work out gaps in services that are critical to wellbeing.
“Anxiety of organisations in the Aboriginal sector because of short funding agreements is ongoing, this significantly impacts on people accessing services and people employed in these services and leads to loss of staff.
“There’s nothing to be gained from rolling out short term funding that create uncertainty in the sector. The committee has recommended longer contracts be awarded to ensure stability so that organisations can plan and deliver sustainable services to their communities.
“Particularly concerning is that the soon to be released new guidelines are finalised and a draft has not been subject to consultation.
“Evidence to the inquiry showed the competitive tendering process to apply for funding favours large, non-Aboriginal organisations. Considering we know that decision making and self-determination is key to reducing Aboriginal disadvantage, this beggars belief.
“It is imperative that future tender rounds are not blanket competitive processes and are underpinned by robust service planning. It is also important the future decisions on funding factor in the contribution and effectiveness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations.
“There was across the board confusion over the application process; and then further confusion over what was funded when the Minister made the funding announcement.
“The Greens have tabled a short additional comments report addressing the need to address the funding cuts in the 2014-15 budget and to address the on-going gaps such as legal services in the Barkly region. I urge the Government to act on the recommendations on the report and urgently fix the sweeping failures of the IAS presented to the committee.