With so much going on these days, it’s sometimes hard to see the future behind the clouds. But Spring is upon us.
At IBA, we believe in the resilience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – thousands of years and generations of existence speaks volumes to portray that success.
Through the bushfires at the start of the year and then the pandemic, we’ve supported Indigenous homeowners and businesses to ride the waves of uncertainty (see IBA COVID Support for more info). We are now looking towards the future and how we can all come out of this time stronger than we were before. It’s about surviving to thrive.
October has been a big month for IBA – we’ve had an equity injection for home loans in the Federal Budget, hosted a business forum with the Minister for Indigenous Australians, and confirmed our partnership with First Nations Foundation.
All these events support the future success for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Equity injection for home loans
The Federal Budget announcement provided IBA with an equity injection of $150 million to distribute home loans to Indigenous Australians to construct homes in regional locations. This is a huge success for both Indigenous Australians and a stimulus for the economy.
Over the life of the program, close to 20,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have been able to achieve their goal of owning a home, often becoming the first person in their family history to do so. In the past five years alone, IBA has provided more than $1 billion in home loans to a record number of applicants.
This equity injection means we can deliver an additional 360 home loans for new housing construction in regional Australia and support over 1,000 jobs.
For more info, please see IBA Media Release: “Building homes for the future” or the Domain feature, “Budget funds to help more Indigenous Australians buy their first home”.
Indigenous business success
October is Indigenous Business Month with the theme, ‘Invigorate – Build – Maintain’. The initiative is a product of the Murra Indigenous Masterclass alumni who see business as a way of providing positive role models for young Indigenous Australians.
IBA held a business forum with the Hon Ken Wyatt AM and business owners/leaders Nicole Stewart (Gerrbik Laundry Services) and Katrina Fanning PSM (Coolamon Advisors).
The discussion ranged from the difficulties of 2020 to the positive outlook for our future. Change is imminent but how we manage that change is key. The panellists gave insight to the diversity of businesses out there and their ability to adapt with the times.
The Minister emphasised that resilience and highlighted a roadmap for the future which must include economic development, employment and education.
A recording of the forum will be made available on the IBA website at www.iba.gov.au.
Partnership with promise
Lastly, we want to thank First Nations Foundation for the opportunity to partner with them over the next two years. IBA’s vision for a nation where Indigenous Australians are economically independent, and an integral part of the economy, aligns with the goals of the foundation.
The key initiatives to improve the financial education and retirement goals for Indigenous Australians mean we can all translate opportunities for a better Australia.
The partnership is funded by IBA using a portion of the annual return from its investment in the Indigenous Real Estate Investment Trust (I-REIT), in order to promote Indigenous economic impact. IBA established the I-REIT in 2013, to provide Indigenous investors access to a diversified commercial property portfolio which aims to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns over the medium to long-term. Find out more about the I-REIT.
We look forward to supporting our customers and all Indigenous Australians in their goals, whether that be to own their own home, start or run a business, or invest in their future.
