About the Department of Aboriginal Affairs

The Department of Aboriginal Affairs is part of the NSW Government. We work with Aboriginal people, government agencies, and the private and community sectors to promote the interests of Aboriginal people in NSW and reduce the inequity they continue to experience as a result of colonisation.

Our vision is to work in partnership with Aboriginal people in New South Wales to achieve social, economic and cultural independence.

Specifically, the Department of Aboriginal Affairs is responsible for:

• the Aboriginal Communities Development Program, a major housing and infrastructure program in Aboriginal communities

• assisting Aboriginal people to trace their family history by providing access to the archives of the Aborigines Welfare Board and Aborigines Protection Board

• developing policies and projects on community and social justice issues such as economic development, leadership, family violence and Aboriginal languages

• administering the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983

• developing policy on land, water and cultural heritage issues

The Department has five regional offices.

For more information about the Department of Aboriginal Affairs, please read our latest Annual Report and the Corporate Plan which outlines our priorities for 2002 - 2004.

The Minister for Aboriginal Affairs is a member of the Ministerial Council on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, which is made up of the Ministers of the Commonwealth, States and Territories responsible for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander affairs. MCATSIA is a forum in which matters of current interest are discussed arising out of Commonwealth government decisions or generated by the Council or one of its members

A History of Aboriginal Affairs in NSW

Contact the Department of Aboriginal Affairs