Inquiry into the Development of Northern Australia
Submission 288
Mimi Ngurrdalingi
Aboriginal Corporation t/a
4 June 2014
Joint Select Committee on North Australia
Parliament House
CANBERRA ACT 2600
[email protected]
Mimi Ngurrdalingi Aboriginal Corporation (MNAC) Submission
Inquiryinto the Development of Northern Australia
Summary
In setting out the benefits of our Infrastructure project
we believe that we have pointed out in a simple way the
forces that are holding back development of a lot of Northern Australia.
In our remote part of the country, cultural difference; language
differences; lack of housing/accomodation; education and training; the
tyrrany of distance and lack of adequate transport; the lack of
non-liened land; personal equality and self confidennce and very
importantly, employment combined with proper, real training
the will lead slowly to achieving all the other facets.
Mimi Ngurrdalingi Aboriginal Corporation is an amalgamation of 3 Aboriginal Corporations
working with the arts, culture and language of the Aboriginal people in the greater
Katherine region of the Northern Territory; a region covering 380,000 square kilometers and
more than twenty-two different communities as well as many family groups/homelands.. We
also service the Tourism industry and look to expand that service alongside expansion of the
other services we provide.
We are a well run Aboriginal Corporation that has never incurred attention from any regulatory
body, in fact The Registrar of ORIC, Mr. Anthony Bevan directed that Mimi Arts Arts & Crafts
combine with Ngurrdalingi Aboriginal to become the new trustees of the property at 6 Pearce
Street Katherine known as the “Yulgnu Yards” to safeguard its future and develop its
commercial potential for Aboriginal people in the Greater Katherine Region.
6 Pearce Street Katherine NT 0850: PO Box 920 Katherine NT Australia 0851
T: +61 8 8971 0036; F: +61 8 89710139; E: [email protected] ; W: www.mimiarts.com
Inquiry into the Development of Northern Australia
Submission 288
We have a Feasability Plan and are currentkly seeking funding for a building project that will
align with the plans for the Development of Northern Australia.
Mimi Ngurrdalingi and the Yulgnu Yards serves a vast region.. Since 1986 when the land was
granted, 1.25 hectares freehold in the CBD of Katherine, to the Aboriginal people of that
region, it has failed to achieve its full economic potential for the good of these people. The board
of Mimi Arts & Crafts have endeavoured to change this situation but until 2011, when the
amalgamation occurred, did not have power to do so. With our previously approved project, we
(MNAC) as a board are in a position to change that for the better.
We would like to highlight some parts of the project that indicate the development of our
part of Northern Australia and we believe they align strongly with the stated objectives of the
present government.
Benefits accruing from our project.
1. REAL employment and training for employment opportunities for Aboriginal people;
Below we have identified six of the areas of activity that will deliver employment outcomes
when our new enterprise commences. These are as follows:
•
Short term accommodation (which is next to non-existent in Katherine). Because of this
the cost of commercial accommodation in Katherine restricts the application of training
and workshop opportunities for people residing in remote Aboriginal communities).
Our project provides funding for some twenty accommodation units on site at the yards.
These would provide affordable accommodation for people visiting Katherine from remote
communities including our directors and artists. For example, when we hold a board meeting
our costs including commercial accommodation can exceed $8000-00. By having our own
accommodation available we will substantially reduce this cost to the corporation. In
addition we will generate a new revenue stream to support the operations of Mimi
Ngurrdalingi. More importantly, we will create some fifteen part time jobs for local
Aboriginal people in providing administration, cleaning and maintenance services for the
accommodation units.
•
Small Business incubation;
For some time we have had the space available to encourage Aboriginal entrepreneurs to set up
their own small businesses and to generate their own income streams as a result. The object of
this is to generate new employment and wealth for Aboriginal people from the region. We have
already identified four or five business opportunities that people wish to pursue. The area we had
planned to set aside for this purpose would support up to six new business start-ups and we
would also provide mentoring and support services to them through partnering with other local
providers. This has the potential to provide up to ten full or part time positions once
underway.
•
Workshop areas and artist’s studios;
6 Pearce Street Katherine NT 0850: PO Box 920 Katherine NT Australia 0851
T: +61 8 8971 0036; F: +61 8 89710139; E: [email protected] ; W: www.mimiarts.com
Inquiry into the Development of Northern Australia
Submission 288
Over the years Mimi Arts has provided extensive support to regional Aboriginal artists. This
includes the fostering of three new Aboriginal Art centres in Lajamanu, Ngukurr and also in
Minyerri which is still in start-up mode. The availability of spaces in which Artists can create
their work is limited on their communities and our plans included dedicated artists workshop and
studio areas within our proposed premises to encourage more people to engage actively in
creating their art and in professional development. This in turn would raise Aboriginal
employment with many artists being able to generate incomes that would support them at least
on a part time basis. Further to this the developed space would enable them to learn the value of
quality workmanship and to display their work to and interact with visitors which will lead to
sales and greater confidence in dealing with their potential customers. It is difficult to put an
employment estimate on this activity however it was proposed that we would rotate many
people as visiting artists over time to spread the opportunities for them.
•
An Aboriginal Language Centre;
In 2010 the local language centre Diwurruwurru Jaru closed as it had been mismanaged by the
previous executive officer and board. As part of our negotiations with Anthony Bevan, Mimi
Ngurrdalingi undertook to pursue the re-establishment of a Language centre that would properly
serve the region. Most languages in the region are endangered and language speakers are fast
becoming few and far between. The re-establishment of the language centre would go a long
way to addressing this important issue and provide cross-cultural education for nonIndigenous people coming to the region to work. The previous language centre employed five
linguists as well as Aboriginal interpreters who covered every language group in the
region, up to fifteen at any one time. We would hope to emulate and improve those
employment levels.
•
Cultural Tourism
We envisage creating a centre that will provide similar diversity similar to a mini
Tjapukai Cultural Tourism enterprise in Cairns Queensland. It will present many
different cultural experiences including visual arts; performing arts; cultural theatre; Bush
Tucker walks; Bush medicine interpretation and Dark Sky Camping. This could
potentially provide part time work for up to twenty or more Aboriginal people.
•
An internet café outlet
This will be developed to service the tourists that we expect will be attracted to the “Yulgnu
Yards” once it becomes established. There are obvious employment and training opportunities
associated with servicing the tourist market. We envisage a staff of up to seven people
servicing the café and gaining experience in retail and hospitality.
•
Meeting Place
The developed premises will provide rooms where local Aboriginal organisations can conduct
their business in safety and privacy as the need arises. This will further legitimise the
Yulgnu Yards as an Aboriginal owned centre.
•
Aboriginal Keeping Place for the region;
6 Pearce Street Katherine NT 0850: PO Box 920 Katherine NT Australia 0851
T: +61 8 8971 0036; F: +61 8 89710139; E: [email protected] ; W: www.mimiarts.com
Inquiry into the Development of Northern Australia
Submission 288
Mimi holds in trust many precious historical items belonging to regional Aboriginal
communities and families. It is anticipated that we will develop a formal Keeping Place for
these and other artefacts that will emerge in the future. There will be one or two positions
created for curatorial workers in regards to this collection.
As you can see from the above, our proposal is presented as an earnest program of
development that will bring numerous benefits to some of the people who are in need of
employment and development. Potentially we may be generating the opportunity of
employment and training for more than eighty Aboriginal people from the Greater
Katherine Region, an area that has a very high unemployment rate amongst the many remote
communities we represent. It will also alleviate many of the well known social problems in this
region
6 Pearce Street Katherine NT 0850: PO Box 920 Katherine NT Australia 0851
T: +61 8 8971 0036; F: +61 8 89710139; E: [email protected] ; W: www.mimiarts.com