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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2008-10-16 Daily Xml
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ITALIAN COMMUNITY EXPO

Ms CICCARELLO (Norwood) (15:29): I have often spoken in this place about the many great groups and organisations in our community that strive to make life a little more enjoyable and easy for those who need that extra helping hand. Today, I wish to speak about a group of people who certainly need that extra hand, and a group that is very dear to my heart: the ageing Italian community. Last week, I was very disappointed that I was not able to attend the first Italian Community Expo, held at the Fogolar Furlan—

Ms Fox interjecting:

Ms CICCARELLO: —because, as the member for Bright says, I was in hospital. Even with my best efforts, I was denied the possibility of going. However, I am reliably informed that the expo was a great success. I was delighted that, for the first time, the Italian community had come together as one to showcase the services they all have to offer.

As an MP I am very aware that too often many people are simply not aware of the services which exist to assist them in their everyday lives. It is therefore good to see that many Italian organisations have realised this and are working together to make their message heard. In this respect, I must give my heartfelt congratulations to COASIT which, along with its member organisations—ANFE, the Italo-Australian Welfare Organisation, the Italian Benevolent Fund (IBF), the Coordinating Italian Committee (CIC) and St Hilarion Aged Care—made the Italian Community Expo such a great success.

While the expo is important for all Italians, it is vitally so for those of more advanced years who obviously will need greater information about, and access to, government and community resources and services. To this end, I specifically acknowledge COASIT which, in December this year, will be celebrating five years of service to the aged Italian community.

COASIT was specifically set up for the community to support the rapid growth in aged Italian Australians—in fact, twice the growth of any other community. COASIT has been an exceptional advocate for these people over the last five years, and this is more than ably represented by two of its more outstanding achievements.

The success of COASIT's Community Partners program and WELL project are just two examples of what can be achieved through commitment, hard work and a fervent desire to increase access to aged care services for older Italians. The Community Partners program includes:

the Italian Connection project, which aims to assist older Italians to gain access to residential and other aged care services, and which was responsible for the expo;

the development of an Italian-specific training manual; and

the development and monitoring of an overall arching strategic plan.

The WELL project assists workers to obtain a Certificate III in aged care by supporting Italian speaking workers and improving their skills. This also has been a great success, with a new course beginning in July this year.

The mission statement of COASIT says it all—to promote a collaborative approach whereby Italian agencies can work together for the benefit of their ageing communities. As I mentioned earlier, at no other time is this more needed than now.

According to the 2006 census, 22,463 Italians resided in South Australia, of whom 7 per cent resided in my electorate. However, what must cause concern is the finding that over 55 per cent of that number—or almost 12,500—are over the age of 65. This is up 12 per cent from the 2001 census—a significant increase in only five years.

When the 2011 census comes around, it is inevitable that this number will be even greater, but these figures do not need to be a cause for alarm; rather, they should serve as an opportunity for us to do the right thing and to remind us all of our responsibility. What we must do, and what COASIT and all its member organisations are currently doing, is to ensure that services match this growing number and consequent need. We cannot sit back and expect that things will take care of themselves. We have a responsibility to ensure that members of our community are not only aware of, but are also to access, the services that they need.

While the many great organisations catering for the Italian community already strive to do this, it is important that they also all come together, share their knowledge, pool their expertise, identify systemic shortcomings and come up with strategies and partnerships that will more than match service with need in the future. The expo was a fantastic step in the right direction. I would like to extend congratulations to COASIT, the President, Franca Antonello, and to her board and to all the participating agencies for a job well done.

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