Indigenous Business Month is an annual event, and this year’s theme, ‘Making Our Mark’, sought to inspire the next generation of First Nations business leaders in the Goulburn Valley.
The event at the Shepparton café brought local business leaders together to explore the opportunities and benefits of partnerships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous businesses in the region. Discussions ranged from practical experiences to broader strategies for engagement.
“I (...) hear from business leaders who say they don’t tender for government contracts and projects because they can’t meet the social procurement requirements that include First Nations employment and business outcomes,” C4GS board chair Leigh Findlay said.
“Someone ultimately delivers these contracts and if businesses from outside our region are delivering it, we are not securing the full economic value and impact.
“So, we purposely designed the breakfast event to cut through some of this paralysis and provide information first hand from First Nations business owners and programs on how to identify and work with our local and Victorian First Nations businesses.”
The breakfast also featured a panel highlighting the growing role of First Nations businesses in Greater Shepparton.
Panellists included CVGT Employment Indigenous development co-ordinator and ex-AFL star Peter Matera, Liz Allen Consultancy owner Liz Allen, Atkinson Electrical managing director Kane Atkinson, and TVN On Country managing director and not-for-profit organisation Indigenous Youth On Country founder Jebb Hutchison.
Mr Atkinson spoke about running a business employing several Yorta Yorta men, while Mr Hutchison described the construction of the Munarra Centre of Excellence in Shepparton as a significant milestone in his career.
Ms Allen spoke about social procurement opportunities and highlighted how education within the Indigenous community had progressed over the past decade.
She pointed to census data showing that as of 2021, 64 per cent of Indigenous people aged 15 and over had completed Year 12 or higher, a figure that was 41 per cent in 2011.
The 2021 census also showed that Aboriginal household incomes in the region had grown more quickly than the average for Aboriginal households across Victoria over the past decade, reducing the difference to just three per cent.
Goulburn Murray Regional Prosperity Plan co-chair David McKenzie wrapped up the event by encouraging attendees to visit the Kaiela Institute website and explore the plan — a tool designed to support opportunities that benefit both Indigenous and non-Indigenous businesses.
Mr McKenzie encouraged everyone to take the first steps toward getting involved.
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