The report and consultation process will provide the first national picture of the daily experiences of African Australians. Photo: iStock.

By Staff Writer

National Race Discrimination Commissioner Tom Calma has announced the first national report on the issues facing African Australians.

The release of a discussion paper, titled African Australians: a report on human rights and social inclusion issues, has kicked off a national consultation process to provide a snapshot of the experiences of African Australians in the areas of employment and training, education, health, housing and justice.

“The aim of the discussion paper is to explore issues for members of African communities in Australia, and following this, to suggest solutions which might help to improve policy and service delivery,” Calma said.

He said the final report, informed by the consultation process, would fill a gap in the study of African communities in Australia. Over the past decade a number of reports have been released at state and local levels, but research at a national level has been lacking.

“It is a challenging project as we currently have no national picture of what African Australians contend with on a daily basis,” Calma said.

“We will be running national consultations and calling for submissions on how to improve opportunities for African Australians to actively participate in decision-making about policies and programs that affect them.”

Joining Calma in the launch of the discussion paper, former chair of the Federation of African Communities Council, Abeselom Nega, said the project would capture a range of common and ongoing issues.

“African Australians represent a diverse group with a multitude of ethnic, cultural, religious and racial experiences,” Nega said.

“It is important that we also hear about their lived experiences before arriving in Australia, as well as their enthusiasm and willingness to contribute to Australian society.”

Other experiences likely to be explored include racism and exclusion, fear and mistrust of authority, cultural heritage and values, immigration, intergeneration issues, community relationships and tensions, transport and media relations.

Myriad Consultants have been commissioned to coordinate the national consultation process, including face-to-face and telephone interviews, focus groups and meetings with various stakeholders. Translation services will be provided.

Written submissions close 30 June 2009.

For more info visit the project website.