The Greater Shepparton Multicultural Action Plan 2023 to 2026 was adopted at council’s monthly meeting on Tuesday, October 17.
Council said the three-year plan followed the “success” of its multicultural strategy of 2019-2022 and was developed after community engagement between January and March this year.
It said three key themes emerged during that consultation:
- Inclusion and celebration
- Access to services
- Communication
After the meeting, Mayor Shane Sali said the plan would guide council’s work with, and for, multicultural communities over the next three years.
“Greater Shepparton has a very large and diverse multicultural community,” he said.
“A total of 17.4 per cent of the (68,873) population were born overseas, and 17.6 per cent of the population speaks a language other than English at home.
“The Multicultural Action Plan is vital to assist council in continuing to promote the diversity of our region and strengthen the sustainability and culture of communities which call Greater Shepparton home.”
Cr Sali said each of the plan’s three themes had specific actions assigned to them.
“We are working towards a more engaged community with better services, places and accessible activities for multicultural community members, and both of these plans will help council achieve this,” Cr Sali said.
Cr Dinny Adem moved the recommendation, telling the meeting it was important for a city such as Greater Shepparton to have a multicultural plan.
“It’s pretty clear that multiculturalism is one of the strengths of this community,” he said.
“Outside Dandenong, we are probably the most multicultural city in Victoria, if not Australia for that matter, so it is very important to have this plan.”
Deputy Mayor Anthony Brophy encouraged the various communities within the city to engage with the plan.
“This plan is very much for those in the multicultural communities themselves,” he said.
“It’s not just for us to include them; it’s for them to embrace as well and for us to get around that as well.”
Cr Sam Spinks said the plan would help ensure all communities felt represented.
“Our multicultural community is a huge part of our (wider) community, and it could be argued that the thing that we most have in common is that we’re all different, and staying true to the values of equity, it isn’t just about everyone having the same, but everyone having what they need,” she said.
To read the adopted Greater Shepparton Multicultural Action Plan 2023 to 2026, visit https://greatershepparton.com.au/
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