Ngabun-Bambunj – a path to a strong future for all Victorians
Wednesday 2 April 2025
For immediate release
The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) is proud to launch its first Aboriginal education and engagement plan - Ngabun-Bambunj. The plan builds on existing engagement with community, with the goal of making the VEC's work culturally welcoming, engaging and respectful to First Nations communities across the state.
Ngabun-Bambunj outlines our commitment to identifying and removing the barriers that stop many First Nations voters from taking part in electoral processes. It sets out the plan on how we will work with communities to address these issues.
The plan was developed in consultation with Elders and community leaders from both metropolitan and regional Victoria who make up the VEC's Aboriginal Advisory Group.
Electoral Commissioner Sven Bluemmel launched the plan yesterday and thanked those involved in the process for their contribution and advice.
'I'd like to acknowledge the VEC's Aboriginal Advisory Group, who have shared their history, their trauma and their ongoing challenges, and in turn challenged us to rethink the way we work to ensure Victoria's electoral services are culturally welcoming, engaging and respectful,' Mr Bluemmel said.
Ngabun-Bambunj focuses on 3 key priority areas:
- building Aboriginal peoples' trust of, understanding of and access to participate in the electoral process
- maximising the participation of Aboriginal people in democracy by providing more opportunities to enrol, vote, and engage
- building Aboriginal peoples' participation through supporting self-determination.
'This plan aims to show how active participation in the electoral process can positively influence cultural priorities like language development, cultural and social identity, improving poverty, and health,' Mr Bluemmel said.
The plan is available to download from the VEC’s website at the following link: