| In July this year ANZ, the Australian Government and Indigenous communities launched MoneyBusiness, a culturally specific program to bring financial literacy and money management skills to Indigenous people in six sites including Katherine, Tennant Creek, Nguiu (Tiwi Islands), Galiwinku (Elcho Island) in the Northern Territory and Geraldton and Kununurra in Western Australia. |
| ANZ will contribute $1 million in funding over the next three years and share our experience in developing financial literacy and matched savings programs to enable MoneyBusiness to reach 2,000 Indigenous people. We will also work with the Government and local communities to adapt Saver Plus to reach up to 300 Indigenous families. |
| At each of the six pilot sites, local Indigenous people will be employed and trained to work side by side with individuals and families, offering coaching in financial literacy, budgeting, bill paying, developing savings plans and using banking services effectively. Our local branch teams in these communities will also be actively involved in supporting the delivery of the program. |
| At the same time, we will work with the Government to develop a national strategy to enable MoneyBusiness to be used by other community organisations interested in delivering money management programs to Indigenous communities. |
| ANZ is also working with the Traditional Credit Union (TCU), an Indigenous credit union based in Darwin and delivering banking services to some 11,000 Indigenous Australians in the Northern Territory. ANZ will fund TCU to deliver financial literacy training to its members in Milingimbi and Ngukurr during the initial 18-month program. This will include an independent evaluation of the outcomes in the two communities which will make recommendations on the potential for a long-term relationship between TCU and ANZ. |
| ANZ has also engaged with the Indigenous leaders in Shepparton and the Goulburn Valley to explore the best way to deliver financial literacy and inclusion programs to benefit one of the largest urban Indigenous communities in Australia. |
| With the guidance of Yorta Yorta leader, Paul Briggs, ANZ commissioned the Koori Economic and Employment Agency, Ganbina, to conduct a community consultation to understand the financial literacy needs of the community. The recommendations will be used to inform the delivery of programs in 2006. |
- continue to review and simplify its core products, services and customer communication, and ensure these are marketed responsibly;
- increase investment in its financial literacy and inclusion programs, such as Saver Plus and MoneyMinded, to extend their reach and impact both in Australian communities and other markets such as New Zealand and Asia;
- provide more opportunities for ANZ employees to participate in its financial literacy and inclusion activities through the bank's employee volunteering programs; and
- continue to evaluate progress and outcomes on core programs to ensure the medium to long-term impact on individuals and communities can be assessed.
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