The Foundation becomes a Supply Nation member

The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation has become a member of Supply Nation, putting us in touch with Australia’s largest database of verified Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses.

Our membership delivers on a commitment under our Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) November 2019–November 2021 to purchase more goods and services from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-owned businesses.

Businesses certified by Supply Nation invest in their children’s education, act as mentors for employees and other businesses, and are positive role models in their community. This ‘social return’ to the community has been valued using a Social Return on Investment assessment tool. For every dollar spent with a Supply Nation Certified business, the average social return to the community is $4.41.

By ensuring that our procurement decisions include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses, the Foundation can contribute to greater economic empowerment and help "close the gap".

For example, Arranyinha is an Aboriginal-owned business we work with to facilitate community consultation. As its cofounder and director Marsha Uppill puts it, 'Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses provide cultural clarity that cannot be found in businesses not Indigenous-owned and operated.

'Indigenous business can be found in any sector and any market. There is no excuse to not seek or support "blak business".'

Arranyinha’s involvement in our community consultation process has been important to its success. As Marsha points out, 'We are a multicultural continent and we are multicultural as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. To truly respond to the needs of a particular community, you need to ensure that those working with you understand that community or, at the very least, have appropriate cultural safety and cultural respect frameworks in place to ensure the information being captured is not lost in its translation to strategy or action planning outcomes.'

Diversifying our supply chain involves staff across the Foundation using Supply Nation to seek out, and engage with, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander business sector. This opportunity for all staff to put our RAP into action embeds inclusive work practices into our day-to-day operations.

In the financial year 2019–20, the Foundation engaged 18 different Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-owned suppliers for the provision of goods and services. By working with Supply Nation, we look forward to growing that number.