Improving digital inclusion outcomes and access to services in remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities is critically important for informed decision making and agency. Digital exclusion impacts on service delivery, health outcomes, access to news and information, and participation in social and cultural activities.

Target 17 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap states that ‘By 2026, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have equal levels of digital inclusion’.

Drawing on data from the ADM+S Centre and Telstra ‘Mapping the Digital Gap’ project, the 2023 Australian Digital Inclusion Index was able to provide a score for First Nations digital inclusion according to remoteness categories for the first time. It found a considerable digital gap – 7.5 points on a 100 point scale – between First Nations people and other Australians. This gap increases significantly with remoteness, with an overall gap of 24.4 for remote First Nations communities and 25.4 for very remote communities when compared against national results.

The 2023 Mapping the Digital Gap Outcomes Report presents first year findings from ten diverse remote First Nations communities across Australia. It demonstrates significant barriers to communications infrastructure, affordable devices and services, and digital ability. It is the first in a series of annual reports providing timely data and community-led strategies to guide policy and program initiatives to help close the digital gap.

Join our online event for an overview of the data, context, and key findings from the report, discussion of the state of service provision and news and media access across research sites, case studies of on-the-ground experiences of residents and service providers, and an interactive Q&A session with leading industry and academic experts.