Jobs Program for Indigenous People With Disability

A new program aimed at assisting Indigenous people with disability access and participate in tertiary education so they can gain meaningful employment has been launched in Cairns.

The Federal Government’s National Disability Coordination Officer (NDCO) Programme and First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) unveiled the NDCO Indigenous Awareness Project.

A consortium of three NDCO Regions received one-off additional strategic funding to create the Indigenous Awareness Project resource.

National Disability Coordination Officer, North Queensland, Gary Travers, said Indigenous people would benefit from the new initiative.

“The project aims to provide material that will enhance cultural awareness and be a training asset for service provider staff, particularly in the changing disability sector,” Travers said.

“This resource aims to give users a more personal glimpse into the lived experience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with disability and the impact service provision can have on their lives, whether positive or negative. We think this will be particularly useful for non-Indigenous service providers and staff.”

CEO of FPDN, Damien Griffis, said he was happy to see Indigenous people with disability being targeted by the project.

“We are very pleased to partner with the NDCO on this project,” Griffis said.

“The disability community in Indigenous Australia is very diverse and it’s really important to recognise this when working in community. This project gives valuable insights and we hope it will also instill greater confidence in service providers and to those Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with disability who may need to access non-Indigenous services.”

A website for the program was officially launched last week and the Government said it had been created to allow for ongoing input from Indigenous organisations, professionals and individuals.

“The initial resource will serve as a platform for ongoing discussion and development,” the Government said.

“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations and individuals will be able to add their own content and even develop their own pages within the site. This website aims to be accessible and interactive, to encourage non-technical users to contribute.”

The website can be viewed here.