Multicultural Services Directory

386 The Hon. J.S. LEE (Deputy Leader of the Opposition) ().28 August 2024). Can the Minister for Tourism advise:

1. Will the South Australian Multicultural Services Directory be made available in languages other than English?

2. How many languages will be supported, and which languages will be given priority?

3. How much funding will be allocated for translating the directory and what is the expected timeline for translating the directory?

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development, Minister for Forest Industries): I have been advised:

The Australian Refugee Association (ARA) has commenced work to translate Multicultural Services Directory listings into the following 10 additional languages other than English:

Mandarin

Arabic

Vietnamese

Cantonese

Spanish

Dari

Burmese

French

Nepali

Swahili

ARA has selected these as the most widely spoken languages by migrants and refugees in South Australia.

If someone visits the app and selects to view the information in a language other than English, all listings across the directory will be translated into that language. Only the 'organisation description' will remain in English, as this content is manually entered by each organisation during their registration process.

Multicultural Affairs in the Department of the Premier and Cabinet allocated $34,000 (plus GST) to ARA in 2023-24 to upgrade the Multicultural Services Directory to support these additional languages. This work is due to be completed by 30 December 2024.