New Closing the Gap data shows focus on Priority Reforms by governments needed to see real improvement
Media release
Released 13 / 03 / 2025
The latest update of the Productivity Commission’s Closing the Gap Dashboard, which measures progress towards the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, adds a new year of data for eight of the 19 targets and 15 of the supporting indicators.
This update shows the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in prisons increased by 15% between 2023 and 2024 (target 10). This represents a further worsening of outcomes against this target – the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in prisons has now increased 30% since 2019 (the baseline year).
For the first time since 2014-15, data is available on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s access and use of the internet (target 17). Nationally in 2022-23, almost nine in ten (88.3%) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over, used the internet in the past three months, and eight in 10 used it daily. However, assessment of progress against the target is not possible.
New data shows the amount of land and sea country subject to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders rights or interests (targets 15A and 15B) has continued to increase and is still on track.
This update also shows that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children continue to be over-represented in the child protection system (target 12). Nationally in 2024, the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged 0–17 years in out-of-home care was 50.3 per 1,000 children. The 2024 rate is the same as the rate in 2023, and it is an increase from 47.3 per 1,000 children in 2019 (the baseline year).
In 2023, the rate of suicide among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people was 30.8 per 100,000 people. This is the highest rate over the period from the baseline year in 2018 (23.6 per 100,000 people), although caution is advised in interpreting this result as changes were made to data collection from 2022.
Overall, four targets are now on track to be met and a further six targets show improvement but are not on track to be met. Outcomes are worsening against four targets and a further four targets are not able to be assessed.
“In our review of progress towards the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, we found that governments had not taken enough meaningful action to meet their commitments under the Agreement,” said Commissioner Selwyn Button.
“The continued worsening of outcomes we’ve seen in some Closing the Gap target areas shows the importance of governments taking their commitments to the National Agreement seriously, and taking meaningful actions to fully implement the priority reforms.”
There is no nationally agreed process to determine the relevant contributions required from each state and territory towards the targets. However, the dashboard highlights areas where jurisdictions have shown improvement, a worsening, or no change against each target. Following this update, each jurisdiction’s progress against the targets is as follows:
- NSW – improvement for most targets. Worsening against targets 4 (child development) and 10 (imprisonment)
- Victoria – improvement for most targets. Worsening against target 12 (children in out-of-home care)
- Queensland – improvement for most targets. Worsening against targets 10 (imprisonment), 11 (youth detention) and 12 (out-of-home care)
- WA – improvement for most targets. Worsening against targets 2 (children born at a healthy birthweight), 4 (child development) and 10 (imprisonment)
- SA – improvement for most targets. Worsening against targets 7 (youth engagement), 10 (imprisonment) and 12 (out-of-home care)
- Tasmania – improvement for most targets. Worsening against targets 9A (housing), 10 (imprisonment) and 12 (out-of-home care)
- ACT – improvement for most targets. Worsening against targets 9A (housing) and 11 (youth detention)
- NT – improvement against half the targets. Worsening against targets 1 (female life expectancy), 2 (birthweight), 3 (early childhood education), 4 (child development), 7 (youth engagement), 8 (employment), 10 (imprisonment), and 11 (youth detention).
As part of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, the Productivity Commission has responsibility for publishing information that will inform reporting on progress against the Agreement. The Closing the Gap Dashboard provides the most up-to-date information available on the targets and supporting indicators specified the Agreement. A further update to the dashboard and the release of the fifth Annual Data Compilation Report is scheduled for July 2025.