Participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is fundamental to sustainable Northern Australia development.
" Participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is fundamental to sustainable Northern Australia development. "
The region is home to 170,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This represents 13% of the total Northern Australian population,125 and 26% of the total Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples in Australia (compared to a 2% representation within the average Australian community).126
In the Northern Territory, the figure is 30% of the population and in the Kimberley region of Western Australia it is 49%.127 There are many small communities on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land - 72 in the Northern Territory alone.128