Introduction
The 1967 referendum gave the Australian Parliament the Constitutional power to make laws for all Australian people, and to take account of Aboriginal people in determining the population of Australia. From 1967, Indigenous people were counted in the Australian census and included in base figures for Australian Government funding granted to the States and Territories on a per capita basis.
Successive Australian Governments have modified the administration of Indigenous affairs with the objective of focusing attention on areas of Indigenous disadvantage.
The objective of this audit was to assess how four key departments: Education, Science and Training (DEST); Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR); Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaCSIA); and Health and Ageing (DoHA) are implementing the 2004 Indigenous Affairs Arrangements (IAAs)