Progress in Closing the Gap has been slow. All parties to the 2020 National Agreement on Closing the Gap committed to mobilising all avenues and opportunities available to meet the National Agreement’s objectives. The National Agreement includes 17 socio-economic outcome areas with 19 targets. This audit focuses on activities related to the three outcome areas for schooling and early childhood development: preschool enrolment (Target 3), developmental progress (Target 4) and year 12 completion (Target 5).

Four entities have key roles relating to Targets 3, 4 and 5: the Department of Education, the Department of Social Services, the National Indigenous Australians Agency and the Productivity Commission.

There were three recommendations to the Australian Government regarding the completeness and meaningfulness of target reporting and one to the Department of Education regarding monitoring of funding to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations.

Key findings

• Partnership arrangements and funding design activities for schooling and early childhood development commitments are largely effective and improving. There is a declining level of transparency over progress.
• Entities are largely working in partnership with First Nations people on policy options.
• The principles of the National Agreement have been increasingly applied over time in the design of key funding arrangements.
• Progress reporting for Targets 3, 4 and 5 could be more reliable and complete.