Advertising


Feature

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women key contributors in community


Morgan Liotta


10/07/2018 2:34:21 PM

The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics report shows that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are more empowered than ever.

Empowerment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women has a strong influence on their communities.
Empowerment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women has a strong influence on their communities.

To coincide with NAIDOC Week’s 2018 theme, ‘Because of her, we can!’, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has released ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women Celebrated’ – a report focusing on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women’s achievements and revealing that they are becoming increasingly empowered through engaging in education and providing a strong role model to their communities.
 
The ABS report shows that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women continue to be key contributors to the community, and their empowerment plays an important role in helping to support their communities and raise the next generation.
 
The findings show that three out of ten (30%) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women provide unpaid care to people in their family and community (eg caring for a person with disability or long-term health condition). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women in remote areas are more likely to provide care than those in other areas, reflecting strong community relationships and close family connections.

Three out of five women (61%) provided support to someone living outside of their household, while 61% of these women also lived in a household with dependent children.
 
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are also increasingly participating in formal education and achieving higher academic levels than ever before – with a 45% increase in non-school qualification attainment between 2008 and 2014–15.
 
In 2014–15, almost half (47%) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women aged 15 years and over had achieved a certificate, diploma or degree.

The number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women who have a certificate as their highest non-school educational achievement has significantly increased from 17% to 34% between 2002 and 2014–15.
 
Similarly, the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women holding a diploma level or higher qualification increased from 7% in 2002 to 12% in 2014–15.
 
The report also supports the notion that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women feel a close connection with and are embracing their cultural heritage. Between 2002 and 2014–15, the proportion of women reporting a connection to homelands or traditional country has increased from 70% to 75%, and 63% identified with a clan, tribal or language group. 

 



Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ABS community education NAIDOC week women’s health


newsGP weekly poll Are you concerned about the apparent direction of the Government’s Scope of Practice review?
 
85%
 
5%
 
8%

Advertising


Login to comment