Milestone reconciliation moment as first South West Native Title Settlement report tabled in Parliament

WA reached an historic milestone in its journey towards reconciliation after the first South West Native Title Settlement report was tabled in State Parliament on Thursday. The report highlights the progress made to implement the landmark native title agreement between the WA Government and the region’s First Nations landowners, the Noongar people. Among the key achievements has been the second of 12 annual payments of $60 million made by the State Government in April to the Noongar Boodja Trust. This takes the total amount paid to $123 million so far. These State Government payments made to the Trust will allow future generations to benefit from culturally-led social, economic and cultural outcomes. In presenting this pivotal first report to Parliament, Aboriginal Affairs Minister Tony Buti said he was delighted with what had been achieved so far. “This settlement is the most comprehensive of its kind in Australian history, and something that our State is rightly very proud of,” he said. “The work to date will provide opportunities for generations of Noongar people to achieve sustainable, self-determined social, economic and cultural outcomes.” The settlement is made up of six Indigenous Land Use Agreements, covering about 200,000sq km of the South West under the management of the South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council, which became the Central Services Corporation in June. WA’s new Regional Corporations are expected to be appointed before the end of the year. Mr Buti said he looked forward to the next steps in this process, which will involve a five-year plan to transferring up to 320,000ha of crown land to be held and developed in line with the cultural, social and economic goals of the Noongar people. Another key focus will be solidifying partnerships between the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions and six Cooperative Management Agreements in order to boost South West land management with the long-established ancestral knowledge of the Noongar people. “I look forward to starting the formal partnerships between the six new Noongar Regional Corporations, SWALSC and the WA Government — and the continued flow of benefits,” Mr Buti said.