Earlier in the year I was asked to join the Minister Leeanne Enoch’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Business and Innovation Reference Group. The Reference Group will be formed for 12 months and will meet 4 times in 2017. It’s the first Reference Group of its nature – for business – ever established in Queensland. There are representatives from all across Queensland and across different sectors.
We spent some time discussing how we can ‘champion’ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and businesses to participate in business.
I think it’s fundamental that we develop the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander business eco-system. This involves working across different sectors, within educational systems (importantly in higher education), and across regions within Queensland. We need to appreciate the importance of short and long-term business development including realising that this takes time. At the heart of a lot of this work is the development of the Indigenous Chambers of Commerce. Our strong chamber movement across the state will help to support our businesses at their many stages of growth.
It’s an exciting time right now to be in business. I’m looking forward to seeing how we progress over the coming year.