APY Lands, Street Naming

Mr HUGHES (Giles) (15:51): My question is to the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. Can the minister inform the house about a new addressing initiative in the APY lands?

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Minister for Housing and Urban Development) (15:51): I thank the member for Giles for his question. Members will be aware that the APY lands cover an area in excess of 100,000 square kilometres and are home to several Aboriginal communities, with approximately 2,500 residents. Members may not be aware, however, that for some time there has been a lack of a nationally recognised addressing system operating in the APY lands.

With no recognised addressing system, many Aboriginal people living on the lands were unable to provide a valid address when interacting with government and non-government agencies, as well as private sector entities. This is something that most of us would take for granted: being able to provide a valid address so that we can access goods and services, and it has been a barrier for many Aboriginal people living on the lands. Not having a nationally recognised address system means simple things are made vastly more difficult, such as accessing banking services or government services, tasks like registering a car or obtaining a drivers' licence, or accessing welfare services from agencies. These are the sorts of things which are stymied when a recognised address cannot be given.

That is why I am pleased to inform the house that a cross-government initiative means residents of the APY lands are now getting better access to basic services with the rollout of a new addressing system. The APY lands addressing project was jointly developed and funded by the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure; Housing SA; SA Water; and the Department of State Development. For over 12 months, the project team has worked with Anangu to create road names based on the creeks, hills and landmarks unique to the communities on the lands. They also used language names for camel, emu, snake and other animals, creating 143 road names in total across 13 communities.

This project is about making small changes, but resulting in big differences for many people on the lands. Having a valid address means people living on the lands will now be able to do what many of us take for granted: those mundane but very necessary parts of day-to-day life, like getting a phone connection or accessing online banking services, and dealing with government agencies. Beyond that, the new addresses will enable government and other agencies to deliver better services into the communities, as well as assist emergency services.

I have also been advised that the project in South Australia has progressed well ahead of other Australian jurisdictions faced with similar challenges in similar communities. I am glad that the creative thinking of both the local community as well as the government participants has achieved such a tremendous outcome. I would like to congratulate all the hardworking staff involved in bringing this project to fruition, in particular: the Surveyor-General, Michael Burdett; the project leader, Sean Frost; and mapping officers, Tim Rogers and Phil Leonard.