This focuses on facilitating shared access to locally relevant data and information for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The ultimate goal is to empower them with access to, and the capability to utilise, data and information pertinent to their communities. This access enables them to set priorities, monitor implementation efforts to close the gap, and drive their own development.

The implementation of Priority Reform 4 centres on providing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and organisations with access to location-specific data and information. This access is instrumental in supporting the achievement of the first three Priority Reforms:

Priority Reform 1: Ensuring equal participation as partners with the government, with access to all processes and information for shared decision-making. Priority Reform 2: Empowering communities to drive their own development by making evidence-based decisions on policy design, implementation, and evaluation to address local issues. Priority Reform 3: Monitoring the transformation of government organisations in their regions to enhance responsiveness and accountability for Closing the Gap.

Recognising that disaggregated data and information are most useful for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, Priority Reform 4 emerged from the 2019 engagement process. Various data projects, including the Data Development Plan and Community Data Projects, are instrumental in facilitating shared access to information. Additionally, initiatives like the Closing the Gap Community Data Projects Steering Committee and the Closing the Gap Modelling Steering Committee play crucial roles in driving progress and ensuring the relevance of data to community needs. Through these endeavours, NSW CAPO and its partners strive to empower Indigenous communities with the tools and knowledge needed to shape their futures and drive meaningful change.

In this digital age, our stories and future are encoded in the data that surrounds us.

When Aboriginal communities have custodianship and governance of our data, we can demonstrate our sovereignty and reclaim narratives.

NSW CAPO is working with Aboriginal communities to transform NSW Data Ecosystems and make government-held data accessible to Aboriginal communities.

NSW CAPO's project on Aboriginal Data Sovereignty and Governance meets commitments within the National Agreement on Closing the Gap and the 2022-2024 NSW Implementation Plan for Closing the Gap, Priority Reform 4.

Community's Voice

NSW CAPO are responsible for ensuring that “community voices determine how NSW meets its commitments under the National Agreement.”

Between September 2023 and February 2024, NSW CAPO developed and led its first series of community roundtables in order to:

• Build Aboriginal communities’ awareness and understanding of Aboriginal Data Sovereignty & Governance.
• Explore the practical requirements for establishing, implementing and/or supporting this in communities across NSW.
• Increase communities’ awareness regarding upcoming funding opportunities for community-led data projects and governance groups.

Between April and May 2024, our team travelled farther and wider across the state to carry out our second series of community roundtables. This time, we set out to:

• Continue building Aboriginal communities’ awareness and understanding of Aboriginal Data Sovereignty & Governance (ADS&G).
• Report back and build on communities’ input.
• Explore an existing example of Aboriginal Data Governance in practice.
• Workshop a potential model for future Aboriginal Data Governance across NSW.
• Continue exploring the practical requirements for establishing, implementing, and/or supporting this.