Government and Community Advocacy Team

MDA’s systemic advocacy program has been operating for the last 10 years since its inception in 1999 which is funded by Multicultural Affairs Queensland’s (MAQ) Community Action for a Multicultural Society (CAMS) program.

As a result of the Systemic Advocacy Review  in 2008, MDA has committed to its systemic advocacy work which has resulted in the establishment of the Government and Community Advocacy Team (GCAT).  The team is made up of the following positions:

  • Executive Manager – Government and Community Advocacy. This role  oversees the development, direction and implementation of MDA’s advocacy priorities, convenorship of networks below as well as providing submissions to parliamentary inquiries and national discussion papers;
  • MDA Advocacy Worker - This position works with the Executive Manger to provide leadership to our networks, research and submissions and develops and implements advocacy strategies
  • African Advocacy Worker - The African Advocacy Program works closely with African communities in Brisbane to ensure that the issues impacting on African communities are communicated and advocated to government;
  • Grants Access Worker; and
  • Northside Advocacy Worker – This role is the most recent addition to MDA’s complement of CAMS workers and works exclusively with new and emerging communities in the Northside area of Brisbane.  The communities are predominantly from Burma consisting of the Rohingya, Chen, Ka-Chin and also from the Sudan.

These roles operate from a systemic advocacy perspective with both the multicultural and wider sector to influence government and other service providers. Apart from the Northside Advocacy position, all positions have a statewide presence and works in concert with specific networks and established working groups on specific issues.

In addition to that, we have established an Advocacy Research Hub that is staffed by a team of 4 interns who are producing a series of research papers around our key advocacy areas outlined below. 

MDA’s Advocacy Priorities

Employment
There are major barriers to accessing employment and training for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) people which have a critical impact on the economic and social participation of migrants and refugees.
 
In 2009 MDA will effect systemic change through:

  • Advocacy on the current review of the Multicultural Action Plans (MAPs) and Migrant Work Experience Programs for refugees and migrants;
  • Advocacy on the lack of professional pathways and relevant work placement training/work experience/traineeships/apprenticeships for refugees and migrants.

Education
Education is a fundamental right for all residents and has a major impact on economic and social inclusion for people from CALD backgrounds
 
In 2009 MDA will effect systemic change through:

  • Campaigning on the urgent need for a formalized refugee and migrant policy in Education Queensland.

Health
MDA convenes both the Queensland Multicultural Health Network (QMHN) and the Community Health Action Group (CHAG) which comprises approximately 20 health and allied professionals committed to better access and services for all residents of a CALD background.

In 2009 CHAG has identified the following priorities to improve the health of culturally diverse Queenslanders.

  • The urgent need for the collection of evidence in relation to culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) health issues from the public and private health sector encompassing General Practitioners;
  • Lobbying for dedicated multicultural health workers (similar to Indigenous health officers/workers) to act as liaisons between health service professionals and community members.

The  need for high quality Interpreters
This is a pressing issue which affects CALD people across all our priority areas and will be taken up through the work of the Queensland Interpreter’s Working Group (QIWG).

Convenorship of networks

There are a number of networks which are convened through GCAT:

  • Queensland Multicultural Health Network (QMHN) and the Community Health Action Group (CHAG);
  • Multicultural Employment Advocacy Network (MEAN);
  • Queensland Interpreter’s Working Group (IWG).

In addition, there are a number of partnerships and collaboration initiatives with other stakeholders to address a range of other issues e.g. child safety, disability and domestic violence.  Other activities and initiatives are also undertaken to address particular issues when necessary.

For further information, contact:
Karen Lee
Executive Manager
Government and Community Advocacy Team
Tel: (07) 3337 5414
Fax: (07) 3337 5444
Email: karenl@mdabne.org.au