Australia Meets Four of 19 Closing Gap Targets Amid Worsening Child Outcomes

The latest reports and reviews on Australia's Closing the Gap initiative reveal that governments are failing to meet their commitments to improve outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, with only four of 19 targets on track to be met. Key indicators such as adult imprisonment, children in out-of-home care, and youth detention are worsening, highlighting systemic policy failures rather than community shortcomings. Indigenous leadership groups like NIHLA and SNAICC emphasize that government inaction and insufficient structural reforms are the core issues, calling for cultural safety, shared decision-making, and long-term investment in Indigenous organizations. Progress has been observed where governments work in genuine partnership with Indigenous communities, demonstrating that change is possible but requires consistent follow-through on existing agreements. The Productivity Commission and independent reviews urge urgent systemic reform to prevent further deterioration and stress that the National Agreement on Closing the Gap is an operational blueprint, not merely aspirational. These findings underscore the need for governments to fully implement priority reforms and strengthen Indigenous community control to achieve meaningful progress.