4 M eeting the needs of Aboriginal 1 people with a disability has been a key priority area in governments’ negotiations for the fourth Commonwealth State/Territory Disability Agreement (CSTDA). In spite of all the rhetoric about improving services for Aboriginal people with a disability, there still remain inadequate resources for service providers to effectively do this in a culturally appropriate manner. Australian Bureau of Statistics data show that Aboriginal people are under-represented in the user population of disability services. The bureau’s data indicate that 4. per cent of the population of people with a core activity restriction in need of assistance under 65 are from an Aboriginal cultural background. Furthermore, the incidence of disability in the indigenous population is higher than that in the Australian population as a whole. Data from the CSTDA National Minimum Data Set show that in the 004–05 financial year 3. per cent of the overall user population of CSTDA-funded disability services under the age of 65 identified themselves as being from an Aboriginal cultural background. In response to the under- representation of Aboriginal people in government-funded disability services, the Commonwealth has increased pressure on service providers through funding agreements to meet the needs of this population. Government 1 The term Aboriginal is used to make the paper easier to read, recognising that the arguments put forth refer to both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, families and their families. must understand that the issue is not that service providers do not want to work collaboratively to increase the number of Aboriginal service users and provide the necessary support in a culturally competent manner. On the contrary, there is a high level of enthusiasm and commitment in the sector to do just that. The sector in the main does not know how to overcome the many barriers to effective service delivery for Aboriginal people. There are no resources to guide services on how to attract Aboriginal people to their services and provide the necessary support in a culturally competent manner. I suggest there are four major inhibitors. I also propose a few solutions to overcome the challenges they represent. Insuficient data for service planning, implementation and delivery Until the results of the 006 Census of Population and Housing were released, the incidence of disability in Aboriginal families by Local Government Area (LGA) was largely unknown. Service providers were unable to ascertain the level of unmet demand in the Aboriginal population in their jurisdiction. Before the 006 Census, the 001 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey (NATSISS) provided the only data available on the incidence of disability in the Aboriginal population at a national level. The NATSISS data cannot be aggregated by state or territory because the accuracy of the data is unknown. Government often applied Service delivery for Aboriginal people with a disability and their families John Gilroy The sector needs equity inputs to achieve equity outputs, says John Gilroy The sector in the main does not know how to overcome the many barriers to effective service delivery for Aboriginal people