'Close the Gap' Statement of Intent (Victoria)

Category: Event
Binomial Name: Victorian Government
Date: 19 August 2008
Sub Category:Statement of Commitment/Intention
Place:
State/Country:Victoria, Australia
Alternative Names:
  • Indigenous Health Equality Summit Statement of Intent
  • Subject Matter:Health and Community Services | Reconciliation
    URL: http://www.vaccho.org.au/rw_documents/Statement%20of%20Intent%2019.08.08.pdf
    Summary Information:
    The Victorian 'Close the Gap: Indigenous Health Equality Summit Statement of Intent' was signed in Melbourne on 19 August 2008 by John Brumby, Premier of the Victorian Government, Tom Calma, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC), and Justin Mohamed, the Chairperson of the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO). The Victorian Government is the third government body to sign such a statement of intent, following the Commonwealth Government (in March 2008) and the Queensland Government (in April 2008) (see links below). The parties to the Statement of Intent commit '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' (Statement of Intent 2008). At the time of signing, the life expectancy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders was 17 years below that of other Australians.
    Detailed Information:
    The Victorian Statement of Intent is the same as the Commonwealth Statement of Intent, apart from two minor changes and the conflation of points five and six. Accordingly, the signatories to the Victorian Statement of Intent commit:
  • 'To developing a comprehensive, long-term plan of action, that is targeted to need, evidence-based and capable of addressing the existing inequities in health services, in order to achieve equality of health status and life expectancy between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians by 2030.
  • To ensuring primary health care services and health infrastructure for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples which are capable of bridging the gap in health standards by 2018.
  • To ensuring the full participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and their representative bodies in all aspects of addressing their health needs.
  • To working collectively to systematically address the social determinants that impact on achieving health equality for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
  • To building on the evidence base and supporting what works in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, and relevant international experience. To supporting and developing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled health services in urban, rural and remote areas in order to achieve lasting improvements in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and wellbeing.
  • To achieving improved access to, and outcomes from, mainstream services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
  • To respect and promote the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, including by ensuring that health services are available, appropriate, accessible, affordable, and of good quality.
  • To measure, monitor, and report on [their] joint efforts, in accordance with benchmarks and targets, to ensure that [they] are progressively realising [their] shared ambitions.'

  • Related Entries

    Organisation
  • State of Victoria - Signatory
  • Australian Human Rights Commission - Signatory
  • Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation - Signatory
  • Event
  • 'Close the Gap' Indigenous Health Equality Summit Statement of Intent
  • 'Close the Gap' Statement of Intent (Queensland)

  • Glossary

    Statement of Commitment/Intention (Australia)