Appendix 2: Priority Reform actions

Priority Reform One: Formal partnerships and shared decision-making

Outcome: Aboriginal people are empowered to share decision-making authority with governments to accelerate policy and place-based progress on Closing the Gap through formal partnership arrangements.
Target: There will be formal partnership arrangements to support Closing the Gap in place between Aboriginal people and governments in each state and territory enshrining agreed joint decision-making roles and responsibilities and where Aboriginal people have chosen their own representatives.

Objective

To strengthen leadership, coordination and shared decision-making in work across government and with the sector to drive progress on Closing the Gap. To align with Statewide Treaty implementation by providing greater role clarity and improving information flows.

Action details

The Coordination Framework will set out how the Victorian Government will work in partnership and share decision-making with Aboriginal people and organisations to implement the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (National Agreement) in Victoria. It will be developed in partnership with Ngaweeyan Maar-oo, the Victorian Government’s implementation partner on Closing the Gap, in consultation with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl.

The Coordination Framework will improve role clarity and information flows in Closing the Gap by:

• reviewing existing governance structures, processes and partnership approach of the Partnership Forum on Closing the Gap (Partnership Forum) to assess how to best utilise the forum and improve its operations
• setting out a clear governance structure and decision-making framework for the implementation of the National Agreement in Victoria
• documenting clear lines of responsibility and accountability across government for the implementation of the commitments and achievement of outcomes set out in the National Agreement
• outlining the role of the Partnership Forum as the senior leadership group responsible for monitoring the delivery of Victoria’s commitments under the National Agreement and the Implementation Plan and driving progress towards Closing the Gap within the public sector (Productivity Commission recommendation 3.4)
• outlining how the Partnership Forum will support alignment and coordination of Closing the Gap work taking place across government, including through Aboriginal Governance Forums and whole-of-government governance implications of the implementation of Statewide Treaty.

The Coordination Framework will also clarify and improve alignment between the Victorian and national Closing the Gap architecture including by:

• ensuring the work of national Policy Partnerships and national Sector Strengthening Plans is reflected in Victoria’s approach to Closing the Gap
• improving information flows between Victorian and national decision-making bodies, including Joint Council and the Partnership Working Group
• ensuring that Victoria’s approach to Closing the Gap provide holistic support to all Victorian ACCOs, including ACCOs delivering services regulated by the Commonwealth such as aged care and disability services.

The Coordination Framework will support delivery of commitments under the National Agreement including by:

• taking a partnership approach according to the ‘Strong Partnership Elements’ under clause 32 of the National Agreement
• ensuring that Victoria’s Closing the Gap architecture includes policy partnerships that respond to local priorities in accordance with clause 35 of the National Agreement.

The Coordination Framework will ensure that Victoria’s work towards Closing the Gap is aligned with, draws upon and supports Statewide Treaty implementation. This will ensure that Treaty and Closing the Gap are working together to deliver the best possible outcomes for Aboriginal Victorians. The Coordination Framework will reflect and, where relevant, integrate key features of Statewide Treaty, including:

• the role of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl in making representations to government regarding matters that impact Aboriginal people
• the processes set out in the departmental guidelines established under section 88 of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025 (departmental guidelines), including processes to clarify the relationships between the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl, the State and Aboriginal governance structures established by the State in relation to the Assembly’s representation powers and functions
• the relationship between the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl and the State as set out in Statewide Treaty and the departmental guidelines. In particular, the Coordination Framework will reflect that Gellung Warl is directly accountable to Community for the performance of its functions and is not subject to direction or oversight by government except as set out in the Statewide Treaty Act 2025.

Theory of change

The Coordination Framework will strengthen Victoria’s Closing the Gap governance, enhance formal partnerships and advance self-determination by:

• providing clarity and transparency regarding responsibility and accountability within government for the delivery of commitments under the National Agreement
• improving communication and collaboration across the multiple streams of work between government, the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl, the ACCO sector and TOCs
• ensuring all relevant parties have access to relevant information and evidence to enable informed decision-making, investment and innovation
• establishing a streamlined, coordinated and cohesive approach to Closing the Gap in Victoria’s Treaty era.

Reporting and accountability

• The development of the Coordination Framework will be led by DPC, in partnership with Ngaweeyan Maar-oo and in consultation with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl.
• Responsible Minister: Minister for First Peoples.

Priority Reform Two: Building the Community-controlled sector

Outcome: There is a strong and sustainable ACCO sector delivering high quality services to meet the needs of Aboriginal people across the country.
Target: Increase the amount of government funding for Aboriginal programs and services going through ACCOs.

Objective

To promote long-term, sustainable and outcomes-based funding models for Aboriginal organisations, that reflect the true cost of delivering culturally safe services and engaging with government decision-making and reporting processes.

Action details

The Framework will be developed in partnership with Ngaweeyan Maar-oo, the Victorian Government’s implementation partner on Closing the Gap, in consultation with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl.

The Framework will be informed by a review of existing approaches across government to funding of Aboriginal organisations, which will:

• build a clear picture of current funding agreement practices, including similarities and differences across sectors, common issues and sector-specific challenges
• bring together work undertaken to date by government departments and Aboriginal Governance Forums to review and improve funding and commissioning practices
• understand the limitations of current funding approaches and how they impact administration, strategic planning, engagement with government and service delivery for Aboriginal organisations
• building on the findings of Victoria’s Closing the Gap Expenditure Review, identify gaps in reporting on funding for Aboriginal organisations, including opportunities to improve understanding of expenditure on specific demographic cohorts (such as older people and people with disability)
• consider relevant findings and recommendations of the Yoorrook Justice Commission, including recommendation 9c of the Yoorrook for Transformation report which calls on government to streamline funding and reporting requirements for ACCOs
• identify systemic barriers, including competitive grant processes, that disproportionately favour larger organisations and may prevent smaller Aboriginal organisations from accessing funding
• set consistent standards for the evaluation of funded programs and services.

The Framework will:

• embed the principles of self-determination and the Closing the Gap Priority Reforms in the design and implementation of funding agreements with Aboriginal organisations
• promote the consolidation of funding streams and alignment of monitoring and reporting requirements across funding agreements, to reduce the administrative burden on Aboriginal organisations
• ensure that funding agreements provide autonomy and enable flexible implementation approaches, in alignment with the principles of accountability and self-determination, and that barriers to the effective use of funds are minimised
• embed a shift towards longer-term, sustainable and flexible funding approaches, including outcomes-focused and demand-based funding, with consideration given to minimum funding periods (noting the Productivity Commission recommended a seven-year minimum)
• address siloing challenges which arise when Aboriginal organisations receive funding from multiple sources across government
• improve transparency, coordination and communication to ensure the timely release of departmental funding.

To support Aboriginal organisations with workforce growth and capability maturity, the Framework will also:

• explore opportunities to build loading for Aboriginal workforce overhead costs into future funding arrangements (e.g. governance, cultural authority, Community accountability, technology and administrative functions)
• explore opportunities to include workforce supports and funding for professional development opportunities to assist staff to upskill and/or move into different roles, including leadership positions.

The Framework will also:

• support Aboriginal organisations to provide better targeted services and expand service delivery capacity where necessary to respond to local demand
• ensure that funding models are aligned with the needs of Aboriginal communities and support Aboriginal organisations to prioritise culturally safe and responsive services
• enable holistic, person-focused service delivery which is prevention-informed and reflects the non-linear nature of service delivery by Aboriginal organisations
• recognise the cultural load and costs of delivering and designing Aboriginal-led services and policies for Community
• support collective funding approaches to enable Aboriginal organisations to operate in partnership with one another to meet community needs
• reflect the needs of smaller, regional, and rural Aboriginal organisations and create appropriate pathways for these organisations to access the necessary resources
• align where relevant with the Burra Lotjpa Dunguludga (AJA4) Monitoring and Evaluation Learning Framework (Yoorrook for Justice, recommendation 3e).

The Framework will embed, as guiding principles, recognition:

• of the legislated functions of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl in representing and advocating for all Aboriginal people and organisations in Victoria, building capacity in Aboriginal communities and managing and allocating funds provided to or generated by Gellung Warl for the benefit of Aboriginal peoples
• that Community control is an act of self-determination, and ACCOs are essential partners that bring knowledges and expertise to developing service models and solutions (Productivity Commission recommendation 1.2)
• of ACCOs’ expertise in representing the perspectives and priorities of their communities and to determine how best to reflect these in the design and delivery of services (Productivity Commission recommendation 3.2)
• that Aboriginal organisations should be resourced equitably to deliver on shared outcomes (Independent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led review of the National Agreement recommendation 3a)
• as per clause 66 of the National Agreement, that investment in universal institutions and agencies should not come at the expense of investment in Community-controlled services
• that adequate funding is needed to support ACCOs to be genuine partners with governments in formal partnerships, as outlined in clause 33 of the National Agreement.

Theory of change

With long-term, sustainable and outcomes-based funding, Aboriginal organisations will have greater certainty and control over the design of the programs and services they provide. This approach will better reflect the holistic way that Aboriginal organisations work – which includes a focus on prevention and early intervention – and help to reduce crisis-driven demand.

The Framework will strengthen organisational capability and viability by supporting longer-term employment, retention and progression of Aboriginal staff and increase the capacity of Aboriginal organisations to deliver high-quality culturally safe services, meet Community needs, and respond to changing priorities.

The adoption of outcomes-based funding models will better position Aboriginal organisations to secure long-term, sustainable and reprioritised funding from universal services, and strengthen local and regional economies.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead departments: DPC and DTF.
• Responsible Ministers: Minister for First Peoples and the Treasurer.

Objective

To support departments and agencies to meet their obligations under clause 55 when making funding decisions.

Action details

The guidance will:

• include information on what is required to meet the obligation under clause 55 of the National Agreement, to:
  • increase the proportion of services delivered by Aboriginal organisations, particularly community-controlled organisations
  • preference Aboriginal organisations when funding the provision of services to Aboriginal people
  • ensure that a meaningful proportion of new universal funding initiatives are allocated to Aboriginal organisations
• include information on assessing the capacity of Aboriginal organisations to meet demand if additional service delivery responsibilities were transferred to them, and supporting Aboriginal organisations to address any identified gaps in capacity
• include definitions of ‘ACCO’, ‘TOC’ and ‘Aboriginal organisation’, to be developed in partnership with the sector, with safeguards to prevent exploitation by non-Aboriginal organisations and address the issue of ‘black-cladding’
• identify how to build on existing policies across government to increase the proportion of services delivered by Aboriginal organisations
• align with Statewide Treaty outcomes, including the departmental guidelines under section 88 of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025.

Theory of change

Consistent implementation of clause 55 will increase opportunities for Aboriginal organisations to access a meaningful proportion of funding to support the delivery of high-quality services and the development of strong and sustainable ACCO and TOC sectors.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead departments: DPC and DTF.
• Responsible Ministers: Minister for First Peoples and the Treasurer.

Objective

To build strong Aboriginal organisations that are supported to deliver services and programs to Aboriginal communities in line with the strong community-controlled sector elements, as detailed in clause 45 of the National Agreement.

Action details

The Strategy will:

• support the development and strengthening of relevant sectors aligned to national priorities, to enable Aboriginal organisations to offer consistent, timely, reliable and culturally safe services to the Aboriginal community
• align with national Sector Strengthening Plans where they exist and support the development of future Sector Strengthening Plans
• align with Victorian Closing the Gap sector strengthening projects
• support internal ACCO and TOC capacity-building and enable Aboriginal organisations to expand service delivery, in line with clause 55 of the National Agreement
• enable stronger sector-wide standards, data, research and evaluation capabilities, which may include the establishment of Centres for Excellence or other Statewide Treaty reforms such as a First Peoples’ Institute as mentioned in the Statewide Treaty
• support arrangements that ensure regional and rural Aboriginal organisations across Victoria have consistent and direct representation on cross-sectoral issues. This will ensure their unique needs are reflected in sector-wide decisions and facilitate the scaling of successful regional strategies across the state.
• align with Statewide Treaty outcomes including each Secretary’s departmental guidelines required under section 88 of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025, and self-determined models of representation determined between the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl and Victorian Aboriginal organisations.

Theory of change

Strengthening the broader sectors, while ensuring alignment with Statewide Treaty processes and providing space for Aboriginal organisations to organise themselves in a self-determined way, will ensure that individual Aboriginal organisations have the capacity to:

• advocate for community needs
• provide high-quality services
• expand services to ensure that all Aboriginal people in the community have access to Aboriginal-led, culturally safe services.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead departments: DPC and DTF.
• Responsible Ministers: Minister for First Peoples and the Treasurer.

Priority Reform Three: Transforming government organisations

Outcome: Governments, their organisations and their institutions are accountable for Closing the Gap and are culturally safe and responsive to the needs of Aboriginal people, including through the services they fund.
Target: Decrease the proportion of Aboriginal people who have experiences of racism.

Objective

To ensure alignment between Closing the Gap, Statewide Treaty and other annual reporting processes, avoid duplication and improve transparency and accountability.

Action details

The Reporting Review will:

• assess the effectiveness of current Closing the Gap reporting arrangements and identify opportunities to reduce overlap and administrative burden
• ensure that Closing the Gap reporting is aligned with other reporting processes, including those established under Statewide Treaty
• align with the Victorian Government’s response to recommendation 9b from the Yoorrook Justice Commission’s Yoorrook for Transformation report, which recommends ‘for all policies, strategies, frameworks and plans related to First Peoples for which the Victorian Government is responsible, develop an easily accessible online tool showing implementation stages, funding, days outstanding and date of completion, and identify the person responsible for implementation’
• consider whether, in the light of Statewide Treaty outcomes, further changes to reporting requirements are required to realise the intended benefits of the Productivity Commission’s recommendations that each government department develop and execute a transformation strategy to embed the Priority Reforms (recommendation 3.1) and include a statement on Closing the Gap in their annual report (recommendation 4.2)
• consider ways to improve Closing the Gap reporting processes to increase Aboriginal people’s visibility of actions being undertaken across government to implement the National Agreement.

Theory of change

Aligning Closing the Gap reporting with other government annual reporting processes will reduce unnecessary administrative burden on departments while identifying opportunities to improve transparency and accountability in relation to the implementation of the National Agreement in Victoria.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead department: DPC.
• Responsible Minister: Minister for First Peoples.

Objective

To ensure the commitments in the National Agreement are consistently reflected in other intergovernmental agreements to which Victoria is a party, in line with recommendation 4.2 of the Productivity Commission Review.

Action details

The guidance will:

• be developed in partnership with Ngaweeyan Maar-oo and in consultation with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl
• document roles and responsibilities across the Victorian Government for embedding the National Agreement into other intergovernmental agreements
• outline best practice and identify opportunities for departments and agencies to support implementation of Victoria’s commitments under the National Agreement – for example, by prioritising funding to ACCOs in line with clause 55
• set out which area(s) are responsible for:
  • maintaining and updating the guidance
  • implementing the guidance
  • providing advice to departments and agencies regarding the guidance
• assist departments and agencies working on intergovernmental agreements to understand and meet the commitments made under the National Agreement, utilising existing and future intergovernmental agreements to drive progress
• improve transparency around when and how Aboriginal people have been engaged in the development of intergovernmental agreements
• align with work and processes under the Statewide Treaty, including the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl’s self-determined processes relating to their role in representing Aboriginal people in national forums.

Theory of change

Intergovernmental agreements provide funding to states and territories for universal service delivery in a range of sectors such as health, education, infrastructure and community services. Intergovernmental agreements also support Aboriginal organisations to care for Country, promote Language and culture and deliver services, which relate to many of the socio-economic outcomes in the National Agreement. Embedding the National Agreement in other intergovernmental agreements improves the cultural safety and service delivery of universal community organisations, opens avenues to addressing the gaps experienced by Aboriginal people at a national and state level, and creates opportunities for funding to strengthen the capacity of Aboriginal organisations to deliver policies and programs to drive progress on the National Agreement.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead department: DPC.
• Responsible Minister: Minister for First Peoples.

Objective

To promote community awareness and ownership of the National Agreement through accessible communications and promotion of community-controlled media. To ensure transparency and public accountability in reporting progress under the National Agreement, in line with the commitment in clauses 132 to 136 of the National Agreement.

Action details

The Joint Communications Strategy will:

• be a shared strategy between the Victorian Government, Ngaweeyan Maar-oo and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl
• promote and communicate progress and provide updates on the National Agreement through a strengths-based lens
• ensure accessible and culturally appropriate communication to Community, by requiring the Victorian Government to partner with Aboriginal media outlets
• ensure that shared decision-making informs the development of all communications materials relating to Closing the Gap
• align with Statewide Treaty processes, including any relevant matters under departmental guidelines agreed under section 88 of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025 and other Treaty communications work.

Theory of change

The Joint Communications Strategy will strengthen government transparency and accountability for delivering its commitments under the National Agreement and this Implementation Plan. Improved communications enable Aboriginal people to build their understanding and ownership of the National Agreement and support them to engage directly with government on Aboriginal people’s priorities or issues.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead department: DPC.
• Responsible Minister: Minister for First Peoples.

Priority Reform Four: Shared access to data and information at a regional level

Outcome: Aboriginal people have access to, and the capability to use, locally relevant data and information to set and monitor the implementation of efforts to close the gap, their priorities and drive their own development.
Target: Increase the number of regional data projects to support Aboriginal communities to make decisions about Closing the Gap and their development.

Objective

To ensure that approaches to IDS and IDG across government as progressed through Statewide Treaty are informed by the National Agreement’s Priority Reforms.

Action details

• Engage with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl as they progress work on IDS and IDG, to consider alignment with the National Agreement, including with regard to:
  • Victoria’s obligations under Priority Reform Four, including the data and information elements set out in clause 72
  • the recommendations of the Productivity Commission’s Review of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap
  • the consultation processes established under the Statewide Treaty Act 2025
  • work underway in collaboration with other jurisdictions, including the Data Development Plan and the Data Policy Partnership.
• Engage with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl to support Aboriginal organisations to build their capacity to collect, manage and use data that directly impacts their communities, including language data and cultural data. This may include:
  • skills and workforce development opportunities
  • identifying types of secure data storage infrastructure and resourcing needs to support Aboriginal organisations
  • ongoing training and support for Aboriginal organisations in research, evaluation, data management, analysis, and interpretation in ways that reflect Aboriginal ways of knowing and promote knowledge transfer and translation
  • varying data capture, storage and sharing requirements – including e.g. requirements specifically related to TOCs and Traditional Owner groups and their data.

Theory of change

Advancing IDS and IDG and empowering Aboriginal people and organisations to access and manage data – including through enhancing digital inclusion and access to information and services – will improve the quality of partnerships, reframe deficit narratives about Aboriginal people that are often built from poor interpretations of data, and improve Aboriginal people’s trust in data collection and management. This will ultimately lead to better and more accurate design of policy and programs to close the gap.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead departments: DPC and DGS.
• Responsible Ministers: Minister for First Peoples and Minister for Government Services.

Objective

To build a robust range of datasets aligned with the socio-economic targets to inform policy and service design and delivery and improve the utility and safety of data collection for Aboriginal organisations and Aboriginal people, in alignment with Statewide Treaty and WOVG data sharing principles and agreements.

Action details

• Conduct a WOVG stocktake of data relevant to the socio-economic targets, to understand the types and quality of the data that are currently being collected and stored by the Victorian Government (Yoorrook for Transformation recommendation 11). This includes identifying:
  • datasets currently held by government that could best support Aboriginal communities and organisations in meeting the Closing Gap socio-economic targets
  • knowledge blind spots and issues that have been identified by Aboriginal organisations, communities or government (including where data should be captured and is not currently, data fragmentation, inconsistent standards and accessibility constraints)
  • gaps in data that measure progress under the National Agreement
  • potential pathways to address barriers and identified gaps
  • options to manage data that specifically relate to individuals and/or may be subject to consent, privacy and Freedom of Information requirements
  • opportunities to leverage work that may be conducted under the national Data Policy Partnership to address this action.
• Engage with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl and Nginma Ngainga Wara regarding:
  • intersections between their functions and identified datasets relevant to the socio-economic targets, including potential pathways to improve access to data
  • how to address knowledge blind spots and other issues identified through the WOVG stocktake in the longer-term
  • managing the transfer of data from government to Aboriginal organisations, including to Traditional Owner groups regarding data that specifically relates to Traditional Owner Country.

Theory of change

Reviewing and improving the collection and sharing of socio-economic target data with Aboriginal organisations and Aboriginal people will enable them to make informed, self-determined decisions about service design and delivery to drive progress towards the socio-economic targets.

Reporting and accountability

• Lead departments: DPC and DGS.
• Responsible Ministers: Minister for First Peoples and Minister for Government Services.