Australian Indigenous Law Reporter
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Inquiries and Reports - Australia
Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service Provision
Productivity Commission
November 2003
Notwithstanding many years of policy attention, this Report confirms that Indigenous Australians continue to experience marked and widespread disadvantage. This is shown most fundamentally by the 20 year gap in average life expectancy between Indigenous and other Australians.
The commissioning of this Report by the Council of Australian Governments demonstrates a new resolve, at the highest political level, not only to tackle the root cause of Indigenous disadvantage, but also to monitor the outcomes in a systematic way that crosses jurisdictional and portfolio boundaries. In so doing, the Report also raises the transparency of governments’ performance.
This Report, therefore, is more than just another collection of data. It documents outcomes for Indigenous people within a framework that has both a vision of what should be for Indigenous people and a strategic focus on key areas that need to be targeted if that longer term vision is to be realised.
The strategic framework that distinguishes this Report had its genesis in work undertaken by the Ministerial Council for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs. It has evolved considerably as a result of widespread consultations across the country, particularly with Indigenous people and organisations.
Implicit in the framework is recognition of the need to account for the diversity of Indigenous people and their circumstances. It is apparent that data collections will need to be improved to realise this. In some key areas, such as disability, very little data are available at all. There is also recognition that some central factors, such as culture and governance, are inherently difficult to quantify but remain important to document. In such respects, this first Report in the series needs to be seen as a work in progress, one which will benefit from further feedback and consultation.
During our consultations, we learned of many initiatives that were making a difference at the community level. However, progress at this level may not be evident in aggregate statistics. Such initiatives underline the importance of governments’ contribution, but they also show that other ingredients are needed. As one Indigenous leader has publicly declared, “man cannot live by service delivery alone”. Contributions from the private sector and, not least, Indigenous people themselves, will also be important to overcoming Indigenous disadvantage.
On behalf of the Steering Committee, I should like to record my appreciation for the spirit of cooperation and commitment displayed by all those involved in the preparation of this Report. That includes in particular the many Indigenous people who gave freely of their time and opinions to help ensure the utility of the reporting framework.
Gary Banks
Chairman
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Better outcomes in such strategic action areas as ‘Early child development and growth’, ‘Substance use and misuse’, ‘Effective environmental health systems’, and ‘Economic participation and development’, could lead to improvements in the life expectancy of Indigenous people.
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The consumption of tobacco and excessive alcohol, poor nutrition and lack of exercise can all influence life expectancy.
Environmental factors can also play a significant role. For example, lack of clean drinking water or inadequate sanitation can increase health risks, particularly for infants and young children. Other factors are overcrowding of housing, and access to health professionals. Life expectancy can also be influenced by differences in income and education levels. People from lower socioeconomic groups tend to suffer higher rates of ill health and premature death.
Research suggests that although Indigenous people have similar rates of genetic disability to the rest of the population, they have a higher rate of disability resulting from environmental and trauma-related factors. Unfortunately, only very limited data are available on the prevalence of disability amongst Indigenous people. Frequently cited predisposing factors include:
Lack of formal education and training has a big impact on employment options. This can lead to unskilled, low income jobs or welfare dependency.
Retaining students from year 10 is essential to achieving successful completion of year 12, which in turn is a crucial element in proceeding to post secondary education and gaining better paid employment.
Over the period 1998 to 2002, apparent retention rates for Indigenous students to year 10, and particularly to years 11 and 12, have been below the rates for non- Indigenous students.
Post secondary study can significantly improve a person’s employment prospects. This indicator examines participation at universities, as well as technical and further education (TAFE) institutes. However, participation in itself need not lead to improved employment outcomes. It generally needs to be accompanied by success – the attainment of a qualification or completion of a course of study.
Positive outcomes in virtually all of the strategic areas for action could contribute to better Indigenous educational achievement.
At university, Indigenous students are more likely to undertake enabling and non-award courses than non-Indigenous students, and less likely to be enrolled in post-graduate courses.
Having a job is important to wellbeing, particularly in terms of remuneration and opportunity for self development and social interaction.
Groups with characteristics in low demand (for example, low levels of educational attainment, limited relevant work experience, or poor health) are likely to find it more difficult to secure a job.
The labour force participation rate for Indigenous people will, to some extent, reflect the limited employment opportunities available to Indigenous people in remote areas, along with the employment opportunities provided by CDEP (that is, employment may be higher in areas where there are CDEP opportunities).
There are links between unemployment and various dimensions of people’s wellbeing. For example, studies generally suggest that unemployment can be a factor contributing to crime, poorer health, higher risks of poverty and lower levels of social attachment. Policy interventions within the relevant strategic areas for action have the potential to improve these characteristics. In time, these improvements should lead to increased employment for Indigenous people.
The economic wellbeing of individuals is largely determined by their income and wealth. In the absence of data on wealth, the extent to which income for Indigenous people is lower than for non-Indigenous people is a major indicator of material disadvantage.
Income may be derived from employment, assets and welfare. While income is usually received by individuals, it is normally shared between partners in a couple relationship and with dependent children. In some situations, there may also be sharing with other members of a household.
The average income of Indigenous people is significantly below that of non-Indigenous people. All of the strategic areas for action are relevant to addressing this income differential.
Home ownership is an important indicator of wealth and saving, and is likely to be positively related to employment and income. Home ownership provides a secure asset base that can contribute to financial stability and against which people can borrow.
During the consultation process for this Report, many Indigenous people stressed the importance of home ownership in overcoming disadvantage. Improvements in the strategic areas for action, particularly those relating to education and economic participation and development, could increase the level of Indigenous home ownership in the future.
Home ownership is significantly lower among Indigenous people than among non-Indigenous people. In 2001, 31.9 per cent of Indigenous households owned or were buying their own homes, compared with nearly 69.5 per cent of non-Indigenous households.
The proportion of those actually owning their own homes (no mortgage) was around 41.4 percent for non-Indigenous households compared to 12.6 percent of Indigenous households.
Two factors (among others) contribute to the difference in home ownership rates. First, the age profile of the Indigenous population is younger (home ownership increases with age). Second, in remote areas, a significant number of Indigenous people live on communally owned or controlled land. While this means the ongoing ownership of the land by Indigenous people is assured, it usually precludes the sale of land for housing and restricts the capacity to borrow.
Suicide death rates are significantly higher in the Indigenous population (particularly for young Indigenous males) than in the rest of the population.
The 1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody found that those Indigenous people most at risk of suicide were the young, those affected by alcohol and those confined alone in custody. Substance abuse, such as excessive alcohol consumption, has also been identified as a contributing factor in self-harm.
Other risk factors are unemployment and poor long-term job prospects, particularly in rural and remote areas. A 1993 study showed that broad movements in (all) male suicide deaths broadly corresponded with periods of economic downturn and high unemployment rates. The implications are greater for Indigenous people, for whom unemployment is generally persistently higher.
Policy action across a range of strategic areas may be needed to bring about improvements in the circumstances that lead to suicide and self-harm, particularly for young people.
Information on substantiated child protection notifications provides an insight into the extent of abuse, neglect and/or harm to children in the family environment.
Child abuse and neglect are often associated with complex social and personal factors, including the mental health of care givers, substance abuse and violence within the family, overcrowded living conditions, unemployment and lack of access to health care and education.
Children who come into contact with community services for protective reasons include:
Although Indigenous people account for only 2.4 percent of the population, they represented around 15 percent of all homicide victims and around 16 percent of all homicide offenders (in the period 1989 to 2000).
The impact of homicide and hospitalisations for assault extends beyond the offender and immediate victim. Although not reflected in the statistics, families are severely affected, as are the communities in which they live.
Substance abuse is a key factor in homicides and assaults. A much larger share of Indigenous homicides involved both the victim and offender having consumed alcohol at the time of the offence, compared with non-Indigenous homicides. In a less direct way, actions in other strategic areas for action also have the potential to make a difference, by addressing the socioeconomic circumstances which can lead to violent behaviour – for example, improvements in ‘Economic participation and development’.
Violence and criminal behaviour have direct implications for health outcomes and safety, as well as having a negative influence on child development.
Socioeconomic factors are critical determinants of crime. Often the focus of socioeconomic considerations has been their influence on criminal offenders. But these factors are just as important when it comes to victims of crime. The Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody acknowledged that low education and income levels, crowded housing, and unemployment are just a few of the factors that lead to an over-representation of Indigenous people ‘as both perpetrators and victims’ of crime.
Domestic violence and substance misuse, in particular, are critical issues in Indigenous families and communities and may contribute to increased rates of victimisation.
Over-representation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system is of long standing. Many factors outside the system create the conditions which result in incarceration. Actions from ‘Early child development and growth’ onwards have the capacity to improve outcomes in Indigenous imprisonment and juvenile detention rates.
Imprisonment and juvenile detention rates provide an insight into the level of involvement of Indigenous people in the justice system. This, however, is only one aspect of possible involvement. The data exclude:
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Health and educational outcomes in later life are greatly influenced by the health, growth and development of children in their first three years of life. A wide range of social, cultural, physical and economic factors influence the health of children.
The four indicators in this section have been shown to be of particular relevance to Indigenous people. Policy actions leading to improvements in these areas have the capacity to change the lives of Indigenous people for the better in the long term.
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The extent to which Indigenous children begin formal learning at an early age, attend school regularly, and are safe, healthy and supported by their families and communities, all have a bearing on educational outcomes.
Research shows that the children most likely to have learning difficulties often have nutritional, hearing, or other health problems. Poor dental health can cause impaired speech and language development.
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The later years of childhood, adolescence and the transition to adulthood are important phases, which build on early child development and education.
The indicators in this section cover a range of factors with the potential to improve long term outcomes for Indigenous people. They reflect the continuing importance of educational outcomes for young people and their futures, of participation in organised sport, art and community group activities, and finding alternatives to detention for juvenile offenders.
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Substance use and, particularly, misuse have the capacity to impact on every aspect of a person’s life. Life expectancy, disability, employment, income, imprisonment, domestic violence and sexual abuse are all headline indicators affected by substance use and misuse. According to some studies, cigarette smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and illicit drug use are particularly prevalent in lower socioeconomic groups. The relative socioeconomic disadvantage experienced by Indigenous people may place them at greater risk than the rest of the population.
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Families and communities are the mainstay of our society. The extent to which either are dysfunctional can have direct impacts on a range of outcomes for Indigenous people, including: life expectancy, education, imprisonment, violence, employment and income. Dysfunctional families and communities can lead to breakdown in relationships and social alienation – significant factors leading to Indigenous disadvantage ...
The conditions in which people live and work have a major influence on their health. Environmental health is about providing safe and healthy living conditions. This includes the houses in which people live, the water they drink, the food they eat and the safe removal of waste.
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The extent to which people participate in economic life is closely related to their living standards and broader wellbeing. It also influences how they interact at the family and community levels.
This Report examines employment, long term unemployment, land resources and governance as factors in Indigenous economic participation and development.
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The full texts of the Overview and the Report are available online via the Productivity Commission website at <http://www.pc.gov.au/gsp/reports/indigenous/keyindicators2003/> .
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