How happy will 2025 be for First Nations People?

By PETER ROWE

For many Indigenous people 2025 offers no more hope than 2024 did.

We still have inequalities that should have been addressed long ago.

We have a Closing the Gap agenda that is falling way behind in its agenda to improve the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.

In so many areas: health, education, employment and in general lifestyle.

Good health is more than just the absence of disease or illness; it is a holistic concept that includes physical, social, emotional, cultural, spiritual and ecological wellbeing, for both the individual and the community.

Diabetes, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cancers. self-harm, mental health and substance use disorders are top priorities to address in 2025.

Mental illness in Indigenous communities has come in the form of chronic suicide rates, alcoholism, violence of all forms, racism, post-traumatic stress disorder and depression disorders.

And as a result, life expectancy is lower. In a first world country like Australia, that is a shameful statistic.

Education is fundamental to improving health outcomes of First Nations people.

Areas requiring action and improvement have long been highlighted, particularly early childhood education.

Targets have come and gone – and despite efforts from all sides of politics those targets have yet to be met.

School readiness and education that is linked to Indigenous culture and lifestyle – not just the European-led curriculum – will lead to better employment outcomes.

Indigenous Australians face greater barriers to employment, including a lack of access to high-quality training, limited access to supportive workplaces, inconsistent mentoring for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander job seekers and few long-term job opportunities.

Barely 50 per cent of working age First Nations people were employed in 2021 – and that figure will be no better today.

Social attitudes to the challenges Indigenous communities face must be addressed – yes, racism is still very much alive in Australia.

And of course domestic violence, which in 2024 saw tragedy in many communities.

But can we address these issues effectively in 2025?

Can the Federal government’s Senate Select Committee investigating the Closing The Gap targets make a difference?

“Closing The Gap is not just a framework, it is a commitment to our communities,” chair Senator Dorinda Cox said late last year.

To paraphrase her comments, we know the gaps are not closing, with some actually widening.

That is unacceptable.

If 2025 can stand for just one positive piece of action, it should be not just to close those gaps, but to reverse them.