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It's time Australia's "blackfellas" started talking about having careers, not just a job, leading Indigenous business leader Neil Willmett told more than 300 delegates at this week's national Indigenous Business, Enterprise and Corporations Conference at The University of Western Australia.

In his address ‘Why we can't wait - the urgent need to build the Indigenous business sector', the Indigenous Business Council of Australia Chair said Australia's Indigenous business sector needed to develop a strategic plan.

"We're at a point in our life where it's our time to start taking back," Mr Willmett said, stressing the need for Indigenous people to empower their communities through economic development.

Mr Willmett opened by telling the story of his Aboriginal grandfather who was arrested in Queensland on 12 August 1925 for owning a business just north of Cairns.

The family's home was destroyed in front of them, their horses and possessions confiscated and they were escorted by police to Queensland's notorious Palm Island resettlement community, where Mr Willmett's grandfather remained until he died.

In returning to the present, Mr Willmett said:  "Our thinking has to move to where we talk about blackfellas having careers, rather than just a job.

"We've got to move beyond being a business owner to having a successful company, and a big company.  There is an urgent need for change, for reform.

"We don't talk about closing the gap on business.  When are we going to see more Aboriginal businesses?"

The proportion of Indigenous business owners remained too low, Mr Willmett said.

"The reality is that many Indigenous businesses are small, with only six per cent of the Indigenous population as business owners, compared to 17% for non-Indigenous people," he said.

Mr Willmett emphasised the need for strategic development in the Indigenous business sector.

"A 10-year Indigenous business sector strategic plan must be developed, not some three or four-year economic development strategy that is tied to political terms or political parties," he said.

"Strategic plans are really simple.  All we want to know is where are we today, where do we want to go and how do we get there."

However, he said the plan "can only be developed when all stakeholders work together - collectivism over individualism, where efforts are coordinated across all jurisdictions and where priorities are established".

Mr Willmett also called for more Indigenous business activity in regional and remote areas, saying most Indigenous businesses (89%) were in major cities, and better data collection.  He suggested that the Australian Bureau of Statistics conduct surveys like Canada's national Aboriginal business survey.

Mr Willmett also called for stronger laws and penalties to protect Indigenous businesses against unscrupulous business operators.

"In the US there are laws in place where people are fined ($20,000 automatic penalty) for falsely claiming to be an Aboriginal business or saying they are going to use an Aboriginal subcontractor and don't," Mr Willmett said.

In closing his remarks with a call to action, Mr Willmett said: "We are at an important time in history where this is a chance for us to develop the sector as opposed to letting it fizzle along and do its thing".

Other Conference speakers include:  National Congress of Australia's First Peoples Co-Chair Jody Broun, former Australian Football League and West Coast Eagles star David Wirrpanda and Australian Indigenous Minority Supplier Council CEO Natalie Walker.

The Indigenous Business, Enterprise and Corporations Conference is being held at the UWA Business School on 3 and 4 December 2012.

Media references

Tammy Solonec (Indigenous Media Consultant)  (+61 4) 57 877 308
Fiona Allan (Conference Manager)  (+61 4) 08 645 634
Michael Sinclair-Jones (UWA Public Affairs)  (+61 8)  6488 3229  /  (+61 4) 00 700 783