The Australian Government and Indigenous health leaders have 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.

“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,” said Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Tom Calma.

“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.

“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.

Mr Calma said the $19 million over three years announced by the government to tackle high rates of smoking in Indigenous communities, and the $14.5 million over four years to fund a national Indigenous Workforce Training plan, were concrete examples 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.

Date: 20 March 2008

Source: HREOC