Agreements, Treaties and Negotiated Settlements Project

Agreement for the Provision of Housing, Infrastructure and Essential Services for Indigenous People in Western Australia
Date:	1 November 2005
Date To:	30 June 2008
Place:
State/Country:	Western Australia, Australia

Alternative Names:	Housing and Infrastructure Bilateral Agreement
Subject Matter:	Health and Community Services \|
URL:	https://web.archive.org/web/20060820210920/http://dhw.wa.gov.au/Files/abor_agreement_06.pdf
Summary Information:
The Agreement for the Provision of Housing, Infrastructure and Essential Services for Indigenous People in Western Australia ('the Agreement') was signed by the Western Australian Minister for Housing and Works on behalf of the Western Australian Government, and by the Commonwealth Minister for Family and Community Services on behalf of the Commonwealth Government, on 26 January 2006. The Agreement is made pursuant to the Commonwealth State Housing Agreement 2003 - 2008. The Commonwealth Government had negotiated Indigenous Housing and Infrastructure Agreements (IHIAs) for 2005-2008 with each state and territory government by May 2006 (see Community Affairs Legislation Committee 2006, 76). The Agreement follows two earlier housing and infrastructure agreements (1997 and 2002) and an essential services agreement (2000) in Western Australia, to all of which the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) was a party. Unlike the earlier agreements, this Agreement merges Housing and Essential Services into a single agreement. In the Recitals, 'the Parties acknowledge that improvement is needed in coordinating and integrating the provision of housing, infrastructure and essential services for Indigenous people to improve housing, environmental and primary health and other social outcomes by reducing duplication of services and promoting resource efficiency.' The Recitals also state that the Agreement focuses on 'reforming the governance and management capability of Indigenous Community Housing Organisations' and that '[t]he majority of pooled funds will target housing and related essential services infrastructure in rural and remote areas where there is a high need and where there are no other housing options.'
Detailed Information:
Principles The parties undertake to ensure that the Agreement is consistent with Building a Better Future: Indigenous Housing to 2010 and COAG's National Framework of Principles for Delivering Services to Indigenous Australians. Roles of the Parties The Commonwealth Government agrees to: provide funding for housing assistance and community housing and essential services infrastructure; provide Ministerial approval of strategic and operational plans; assess and monitor the Western Australian Government's performance under the Agreement; promote coordination between linked programs of the Commonwealth Government; and contribute to the selection of Aboriginal Housing and Infrastructure Council (AHIC) members. The Western Australian Government agrees to: provide funds; provide advice and administrative, secretariat and technical support to the AHIC; report on the use of and outcomes achieved through the pooled funds; appoint AHIC members and appoint the AHIC Chair to the State Housing Commission Board of Commissioners; provide Ministerial approval for the Strategic Plan; and promote coordination between linked programs of the State government. 'Linked programs' are defined in Schedule One to be 'programs linked to housing and infrastructure [that] include but are not limited to any program operated or delivered by the Commonwealth or State which is agreed from time to time by the Parties to be a Linked Program.' Examples of services delivered under linked programs are also provided. Financial and implementation arrangements The indicative funding sources for the duration of the Agreement are: the Western Australian State Government; the Aboriginal Rental Housing Program (ARHP), which is funded through the Commonwealth State Housing Agreement and is managed by the Department of Families, Communities and Indigenous Affairs; the Community Housing and Infrastructure Program (CHIP); the Healthy Indigenous Housing Initiative; and the CHIP Aboriginal and Remote Communities Power Supply Project (ARCPSP).