Media Release by The Hon Jenny Macklin MP

Young Aboriginal Women Focus on Education and Careers

Joint Media Release with:

  • The Hon. Julia Gillard MP, Minister for Education, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Minister for Social Inclusion, Deputy Prime Minister
    The Hon. Warren Snowdon MP, Member for Lingiari. Minister for Defence Science and Personnel

The Hon Julia Gillard MP, Minister for Education, and the Hon Jenny Macklin MP, Minister for Indigenous Affairs, today announced $103,000 funding to the Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (NPY) Women’s Council for the 2008 Kungka Career Conference.

Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Women’s Council Career Conference is to be held 23-27 June 2008 at Ngaanyatjarra College in Yulara.

This conference brings together more than 200 young Aboriginal women aged 12 to 20 years from the NPY lands in Central Australia with a range of speakers to explore education, training and employment pathways.

The inaugural Kungka Career Conference was held in 1997 and provided a supportive, culturally appropriate environment where Kungkas were encouraged and inspired to follow their dreams.

This funding commitment reflects the Rudd Governments’ commitment to closing the gap in the life expectancy between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous population of Australia through improved opportunities for educational and career development.

The Member for Lingiari, the Hon Warren Snowdon MP, today welcomed this funding commitment, saying that it showed the Rudd Government’s understanding of the need for extra support for rural and remote communities.

The NPY Women’s Council delivers a wide range of services and programs and identifies education as being the most influential factor in improving outcomes in the life of these young women and their families.