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Historic signing of Statement of Intent between Australian Government and Indigenous peoples on health equality

Historic signing of Statement of Intent between Australian Government and Indigenous peoples on health equality (the first from HREOC and the second from the Close the Gap coalition).

Formal alliance between government and Indigenous Peoples critical to eliminating the gap in life expectancy

20 March 2008 - Today’s Statement of Intent between the Australian Government and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples represented a milestone in the long road towards achieving equality in health status and life expectancy for Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Tom Calma said today.

"This partnership between the Australian government, Indigenous and non-Indigenous health experts and the reconciliation movement, means we are well on the road to making health equality a reality for Indigenous Australians by 2030," Mr Calma said.

The government and Indigenous health leaders today signed a Statement of Intent in the Great Hall of Parliament House to work together to achieve equality in health status and life expectancy between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians by the year 2030.

"Since 2005, the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) has been working with peak Indigenous health bodies and the non-government sector to achieve commitment from the governments of Australia to achieving equality of health status and life expectation between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and non-Indigenous people within 25 years.

"This Statement today means that benchmarks and targets for achieving these fundamental human rights for Indigenous Australians are not only possible but are now firm commitments.

"Let us hope that an Indigenous baby born in 2030 has the same life expectation, the same access to quality health services and the same life outcomes as non-Indigenous Australians," he said.

"There is still much work to be done and this Statement of Intent gives each key player an agreed framework to work within to ensure we achieve our aim."

Mr Calma said the $19 million over three years announced today by the government to tackle high rates of smoking in Indigenous communities, and $14.5 million over four years to fund a national Indigenous Workforce Training plan was a concrete example of the Statement of Intent in action. This was in addition to the $261 million in Indigenous health initiatives already promised.

The Statement of Intent signing was the culmination of the first ever two-day Indigenous Health Equality Summit held in Canberra from March 18-20 and attended by more than 100 experts across the Indigenous and mainstream health sector and related fields.

The Summit has developed working targets and benchmarks to be used to close the gap in Indigenous life expectancy by 2030.

Media contact: Louise McDermott 0419 258 597

New partnership paves way for health equality between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians

20 March 2008 - The commitment today between the Government of Australia and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples of Australia to work towards achieving equality in health status and life expectancy was a monumental development welcomed by Indigenous and non-Indigenous health representatives and Australian civil society, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Tom Calma said today.

"The signing of this Statement of Intent to develop long term plans of action to overturn existing inequities in health services is a major step towards reducing the 17-year life expectancy gap between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians," Mr Calma said.

"We welcome this Statement of Intent and the government’s willingness to work with experts and the close the gap coalition.

"There is still much work to be done and this Statement of Intent gives each key player an agreed framework to work within to ensure life expectancy and access to health services between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians are equal by 2030.

"The importance of consultation with experts in the field and partnership between government and non-government is central to this statement and cannot be over-emphasised," he said.

Mr Calma also welcomed the announcement by the Australian Government today of $19 million over three years for a National Indigenous Health Workforce Training Plan and $14.5 million over four years to tackle high smoking rates in Indigenous communities. This was in addition to the $261 million in Indigenous health initiatives already promised.

Dr Mick Adams, National Chair of Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) also welcomed the Statement of Intent.

"We welcome the commitment to ensuring that by 2018 there are primary health care services and health infrastructure for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples which are capable of bridging the gap in health standards," Dr Adams said.

The Statement of Intent signing was the culmination of the first ever two-day Indigenous Health Equality Summit held in Canberra from March 18-20 and attended by more than 100 experts across the Indigenous and mainstream health sector and related fields.

The Summit has developed working targets and benchmarks to be used to close the gap in Indigenous life expectancy by 2030.

Media Contacts

Louise McDermott (HREOC)
Gary Highland (ANTaR)
Chris Hallett (NACCHO)

Close the Gap is a coalition of some of Australia's leading health, human rights and Aboriginal organisations committed to working with Federal, State and Territory Governments to narrow the life expectancy gap between the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander population and other Australians within a generation.

The Statement of Intent is available online at http://www.humanrights.gov.au/social_justice/health/statement_intent.html .

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