The Registrar of Indigenous Corporations, Anthony Beven, has today released his fourth report on the top 500 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations.
The report covers the 2010–11 financial year and looks at the overall income, geographic distribution and sectoral information of the 500 highest earning corporations registered under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (CATSI Act).
The report is based on data supplied to the Registrar by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations in their audited financial statements and general reports.
Some of the key findings of this year’s report include:
- The combined income of the top 500 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations for 2010–11 was $1.43 billion. This is an increase of 22.7 per cent from the 2009–10 financial year—exceeding nominal growth in GDP of 8 per cent in 2010–11.
- The combined value of assets held by the top 500 corporations was $1.55 billion.
- In comparison to 2009–10 the average income of the top 500 corporations in 2010–11 increased from $2.33 million to almost $2.86 million.
- The combined income of corporations located in the Northern Territory and Western Australia made up 71.3 per cent of the overall national corporation income for 2010–11.
- As in 2009–10, the health and community services sector was the largest with 42.4 per cent of the top 500 corporations operating in this sector.
- For the first time since the top 500 reports have been published, the top 20 corporations earned more self-generated income than funding received through government grants.
- 96 per cent of the top 100 corporations were registered with the Australian Taxation Office as deductible gift recipients and/or income tax exempt charities, but only $17 091 or less than 0.1 per cent of income was generated from philanthropic gifts (based on information received from the top 20 corporations).
- The representation of women as directors on corporation boards stood at 54.7 per cent.
- 10 122 people were employed by the top 500 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations. This represents an increase of 13.5 per cent from the previous year.
- For the first time ever a Torres Strait Islander corporation has featured in the top 10 corporations.
‘The picture emerging from the fourth report is very encouraging, especially in terms of the growth in income and employment. The trend towards self generated income is also positive,’ Mr Beven said.
The report is available to download from ORIC’s website at www.oric.gov.au.
Media contact
Christa de Jager
(02) 6146 4737
Ref: ORIC MR1213-06
7 September 2012