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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2015-03-25 Daily Xml
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Matters of Interest

Community Organisations

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS (15:23): I rise today to talk about two organisations that are developing community capacity and resilience. They are the North East No Interest Loan Scheme (NILS) and Riverland Foodbank. Late last year I attended the AGM of the North East NILS. For members who do not know, NILS was established in 1983 by the Good Shepherd Sisters to provide micro-lending facilities for those on low incomes. North East NILS was established in 2007 to service the north-east suburbs of Adelaide. NILS is based on five values: justice, respect, trust, empowerment and advocacy.

Its aim is to provide safe, fair, affordable credit; to support as many people as possible on low incomes to access NILS; and to enable people to drive their own wellbeing. National Australia Bank has played a crucial role in NILS by providing funds to enable the likes of the North East NILS to provide loans to applicants who meet their criteria. The NAB is to be congratulated for their support of NILS.

Last financial year, North East NILS provided over $45,000 in loans to 47 clients. Last year, NILS issued 24,378 loans across Australia, with 1,016 in South Australia. Typically, NILS are for amounts under $1,000 and, in the case of North East NILS: 23 per cent were for furniture, 18 per cent for refrigerators, 14 per cent for washing machines, 9 per cent for computers, 25 per cent for other appliances, 7 per cent for vehicle repairs and 4 per cent for health items.

North East NILS has established a relationship with local businesses who offer NILS clients competitive prices on their purchases. One major benefit of NILS is offering clients an alternative to other sources of micro lending, such as payday lenders and pawn brokers, whose fees and charges can be quite exorbitant.

Another organisation I wish to talk about today is the Riverland Foodbank and, in particular, the establishment of their new distribution centre at Berri, which I visited recently. I was shown around the Berri facility by Mr Leigh Royans, Foodbank South Australia's General Operations Manager, and Mr Peter Smith, Foodbank's Riverland manager. The company is well respected and a highly efficient food relief organisation, and its Riverland project is well supported by local government, welfare agencies and community groups.

Foodbank South Australia is a not-for-profit, non-denominational charitable organisation that sources, stores and then redistributes food donations to welfare groups that feed an estimated 120,000 to 140,000 people in need across South Australia every year. In addition to its head office at Edwardstown, Foodbank South Australia services the Limestone Coast, Whyalla and Upper Spencer Gulf through small regional warehouses which are located at Mount Gambier and Whyalla.

To address the needs of 35 to 40 welfare groups and schools, the Riverland Foodbank currently services the Riverland and surrounding regions, including the Sunraysia area of Victoria. Food is warehoused at its Berri facility, then packed to order and distributed to welfare agencies, schools, low-income meal kitchens, etc., operating within the region and, I said, within northern Victoria as well.

Additionally, the Riverland Foodbank operates as an export centre to distribute surplus Riverland farm produce to the rest of South Australia. Mr Royans also told me about how, with the assistance of volunteers and the support of local growers, Foodbank SA operates a food packaging operation at Sunlands, near Waikerie.

Foodbank SA was awarded over $296,000 from the Riverland Sustainable Futures Fund towards the establishment of their centre at Berri, which included the purchase and fit-out of premises, communications systems and plant equipment as well. In addition to generating two FTE jobs and creating additional work for a large number of volunteers who play a crucial role in the organisation—

The ACTING PRESIDENT (Hon. A.L. McLachlan): Hon. Mr Kandelaars, I would ask you to complete.

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS: It is a brilliant organisation. I congratulate North East NILS and Foodbank South Australia for their community capacity and resilience building.

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