The Army Aboriginal Community Assistance Program (originally called a 'Project') is a program run by Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) and Australian Army to assist remote Indigenous Australian communities. It is also known as the ATSIC/Army Community Assistance Program and also Exercise SAUNDERS, after Reg Saunders, the first Indigenous Australian to be commissioned as an officer in the Australian Army. [1]
It was announced by Senator John Herron on 14 November 1996. [2] The first round of AACAP projects occurred between 1997 and 2000. The second round of projects were delivered between 2001 and 2004. The program continued in 2005 with projects funded in the 2004 Australian federal budget. The third round of projects were delivered between 2006 and 2009. [2]
By the program's 10 year anniversary, over 100 houses had been constructed and more than $60 million spent on provision of infrastructure including "medical centres, airfields, roads, rubbish tips...[and] sewerage works". Various health services had also been delivered including "men's health programs, dental health screening and pet treatment programs". [3]
Projects are managed through 19th Chief Engineer Works, [4] and are delivered by a range of corps including the Royal Australian Engineers, the Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Royal Australian Corps of Signals, Royal Australian Army Medical Corps, Royal Australian Army Dental Corps and the Royal Australian Army Educational Corps. The majority of these personnel are drawn from the 17th and 21st Construction Squadrons, and the 21st and 22nd Construction Regiments. [4] Personnel from NORFORCE and the various Land Warfare Centre detachments are also sometimes involved. [1] Each project consists of construction, health and training elements and are tailored to meet the needs of the community in which the project is undertaken. [2]
Recent locations for AACAP have been Pukatja, South Australia (2010) and Fitzroy Crossing, Western Australia (2011). AACAP 2012 will be undertaken on the Dampier Peninsula. [5]
AACAP projects have been undertaken at the following locations: [6] [7] [8] [9]
The Army Medical Services (AMS) is the organisation responsible for administering the corps that deliver medical, veterinary, dental and nursing services in the British Army. It is headquartered at the former Staff College, Camberley, near the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada is the department of the Government of Canada responsible for Canada's northern lands and territories, and one of two departments with responsibility for policies relating to Indigenous peoples in Canada.
Karratha is a city in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, adjoining the port of Dampier. It was established in 1968 to accommodate the processing and exportation workforce of the Hamersley Iron mining company and, in the 1980s, the petroleum and liquefied natural gas operations of the North West Shelf Venture. As of June 2018, Karratha had an urban population of 16,708. The city's name comes from the cattle station of the same name, which derives from a word in a local Aboriginal language meaning "good country" or "soft earth". The city is the seat of government of the City of Karratha, a local government area covering the surrounding region.
This article describes the current structure of the Australian Army. It includes the army's order of battle and the headquarters locations of major units. Members of the Australian Army also serve within joint units of the Australian Defence Force which fall outside the direct command of the Australian Army.
HMAS Tobruk was a Landing Ship Heavy (LSH) of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), based on the design of the Round Table-class of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Planning for the ship began in the 1970s to provide the Australian Army with a permanent sealift capability. She was laid down by Carrington Slipways in 1979, launched in 1980, and commissioned in 1981. She was a multi-purpose, roll-on/roll-off heavy lift ship capable of transporting soldiers, APCs, and tanks, and delivering them to shore via landing craft or directly by beaching.
Enoggera Barracks is an Australian Army base in the northwestern Brisbane suburb of Enoggera in Queensland. It was officially established in the early 20th century when the area was used for field training, although the area was used by military units as far back as the mid-19th century. Since then it has been developed into a modern military base, which is now home to units of the 7th and 11th Brigades as well as the headquarters of the 1st Division and the 16th Aviation Brigade.
An outstation, homeland or homeland community is a very small, often remote, permanent community of Aboriginal Australian people connected by kinship, on land that often, but not always, has social, cultural or economic significance to them, as traditional land. The outstation movement or homeland movement refers to the voluntary relocation of Aboriginal people from towns to these locations.
The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) is an Australian Government public service central department of state with broad ranging responsibilities, primary of which is for intergovernmental and whole of government policy coordination and assisting the prime minister of Australia in managing the Cabinet of Australia. The PM&C was established in 1971 and traces its origins back to the Prime Minister's Department established in 1911.
The 17th Construction Squadron is an Australian Army unit consisting of personnel drawn mainly from the Royal Australian Engineers. Originally formed in 1949, the squadron is currently part of the 6th Engineer Support Regiment and is based at RAAF Base Amberley. Personnel from the squadron have deployed on operations during the Vietnam War, in Namibia, East Timor, and the ongoing War in Afghanistan. The squadron has participated in the Army Aboriginal Community Assistance Program since 1997, and has also been called upon to provide assistance to the wider Australian community following natural disasters, including most recently in the wake of the 2010–11 Queensland floods.
The 22nd Engineer Regiment is an Australian Army engineer unit based in Victoria, Australia, and as part of the 4th Brigade, the regiment provides engineer support to the 2nd Division. It was formerly designated as the 22nd Construction Regiment, and raised as a construction regiment, but was renamed to its current form in 2013, following its amalgamation with the 4th Combat Engineer Regiment. It consists predominantly of Australian Army Reserve soldiers, and is supplemented by an Australian Regular Army component staff. It is the Senior Engineer Regiment in the 2nd Division, and the second most Senior Engineer Regiment in the Australian Army after the 3rd Combat Engineer Regiment.
A medical corps is generally a military branch or officer corps responsible for medical care for serving military personnel. Such officers are typically military physicians.
Australian Army Aviation (AAAvn) is a corps of the Australian Army. It was formed on 1 July 1968, although it has a history dating back to 1911, when the Minister of Defence at the time, Senator George Pearce, decided there should be a flying school in the Defence Department. The motto of the Australian Army Aviation corps is Vigilance.
Jigalong is a remote Aboriginal community of approximately 333 people located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
A community legal centre (CLC) is the Australian term for an independent not-for-profit organisation providing legal aid services, that is, provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. They provide legal advice and traditional casework for free, primarily funded by federal, state and local government. Working with clients who are mostly the most disadvantaged and vulnerable people in Australian society, they also work with other agencies to address related problems, including financial, social and health issues. Their functions may include campaigning for law reform and developing community education programs.
The Land Warfare Centre (LWC) is an Australian Army training establishment that is responsible for the provision of promotion courses to commissioned and non commissioned officers (NCOs) in an "all corps" setting. It was originally established during World War II at Canungra, Queensland, as the Jungle Training Centre to prepare troops for combat in the South West Pacific Area. During the 1950s and 1960s, the centre fulfilled a similar role, but since then has evolved to provide a broader spectrum of training courses with detachments at a number of bases across Australia.
The 21st Construction Regiment was a construction engineer regiment of the Australian Army Reserve. Part of the 5th Brigade, the regiment was formed in 1950 and was based in New South Wales where it provided support to the 2nd Division. The regiment has contributed personnel to a number of operations including the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands, Operation Slipper and Operation Astute. It also regularly supported the Army Aboriginal Community Assistance Program and provided assistance to the Australian community in times of natural disaster. The regiment was disbanded in 2013.
The Army Logistic Training Centre (ALTC) is an Australian Army training establishment that is part of Forces Command. Established on 1 December 1995, through the amalgamation of nine separate logistic, health and personnel services schools and the Army College of TAFE, ALTC is headquartered at Bandiana, Victoria, and was established in response to the need to provide more effective logistic training, which had been identified as a problem as early as 1981. ALTC's motto is "Excel with Honour".
Indigenous health in Australia examines health and wellbeing indicators of Indigenous Australians compared with the rest of the population. Statistics indicate that Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders are much less healthy than other Australians. Various government strategies have been put into place to try to remediate the problem; there has been some improvement in several areas, but statistics between Indigenous Australians and the rest of the Australian population still show unacceptable levels of difference.
AACAP Map showing locations and years