NT Indigenous Business Network calls for Aboriginal enterprise to be central to Territory growth

The Northern Territory Indigenous Business Network has urged the Territory government to position Aboriginal businesses at the centre of the NT economy, warning that record infrastructure investment will not deliver inclusive outcomes unless First Nations participation is built into procurement and project pipelines.

NTIBN released its response to the NT Budget on Tuesday, calling for a 30 per cent per capita increase in Aboriginal business participation in government procurement, particularly across major remote investment areas including flood recovery, remote roads, and housing.

Aboriginal Territorians make up more than 30 per cent of the NT population, and the Network says equitable participation in procurement and mainstream economic opportunities is essential to inclusive outcomes.

NTIBN chief executive Naomi Anstess said the Territory’s level of capital spending demanded a corresponding shift in who delivers the work. “Record infrastructure investment must translate into record participation for Aboriginal businesses” Ms Anstess said.

Ms Anstess argued that Closing the Gap targets cannot be achieved through service delivery alone. “Closing the Gap cannot be achieved through service delivery alone. Economic participation, business ownership and wealth creation must be treated as core economic priorities and embedded across the Territory’s growth agenda” she said.

The call for change is backed by new research. A project undertaken by NTIBN with Yamagigu Consulting and Deloitte Access Economics confirmed that Aboriginal businesses contributed an estimated $3.4 billion to total economic activity in the Territory in 2024-25. That equates to 10.1 per cent of Gross Territory Product, making the Aboriginal business sector the third largest economic contributor in the NT, behind only mining and public administration and safety. The full report will be released in May 2026.

NTIBN said realising the sector’s potential will require stronger pathways for Aboriginal participation across major projects and supply chains, ensuring that economic investment delivers both growth and local benefit.

The Network has also raised concerns about access to capital, pointing to the absence of the Aboriginal Business Development Grant, which it says plays a critical role in helping enterprises scale and compete for larger contracts.

The response calls for Aboriginal economic development to be “embedded across key government portfolios”, supported by coordinated long-term strategies and consistent implementation of the Aboriginal Procurement Policy across all NT Government agencies. Ms Anstess said the structures supporting Aboriginal businesses must keep pace with the demands placed on them.

NTIBN represents more than 460 certified Aboriginal-owned enterprises in the Territory with a combined turnover of around $3 billion. The Network has consistently advocated for protections against “Black-cladding”, where non-Indigenous companies inflate Indigenous shareholding to access procurement programs designed to support First Nations enterprise.

For NTIBN, the message is that the Territory has a generational opportunity to embed Aboriginal businesses in its economic future. Ms Anstess said the opportunity is to ensure billions of dollars in industry and infrastructure spending delivers full economic return by placing Aboriginal businesses at the centre of it.