NT Gender Equality Action Plan 2022-2025

By increasing Territorians’ understanding of gender and the factors which contribute to gender inequality, actions under this focus area will promote the social and economic benefits of gender equality for everyone in the NT.

Understanding gender equality and the drivers of gender-based violence is fundamental to violence prevention.

This action plan recognises culturally appropriate engagement with Territory communities as being essential in recognising the strengths of communities and in developing actions which empower positive change for all Territorians.

A person’s gender is a powerful social determinant of health and wellbeing. This is the case for men, women, transgender, gender-diverse and intersex people.

Gender affects health system responses to individuals, and there are differences in the health and welfare needs of women, men and people of diverse genders.

These differences are illustrated by different:

• rates of injury, physical and mental illness and mortality
• attitudes towards health and healthy activities
• ways in which health services are accessed.

There is a need to raise awareness about the importance of mental health and to make talking about and seeking help for positive mental health outcomes more acceptable for all.

The action plan seeks to increase and improve social connections between people to improve wellbeing.

It encourages increased uptake of healthy and active behaviours and initiatives that respond to gender-based inequities and promotes community and social connections and mental wellbeing.

Gender-based violence refers to any harm committed against a person on the basis of gender, which is the socially ascribed differences between men and women.

This violence can be used to reinforce conformity to traditional gender roles, and gender-based violence can happen to anyone, regardless of gender identity.

Increasing gender equality is crucial to reducing gender-based violence in our community.

The NT has the highest rates of domestic, family and sexual violence in Australia, disproportionately impacting Aboriginal women and girls.

Some forms of violence are direct. This includes emotional, physical, or sexual violence experienced in public, at home and in workplaces.

In contrast, other forms of violence are structural and indirect. This includes norms and attitudes that disadvantage Aboriginal people based on their gender and race.

All forms of sexual violence, including coercion, sexting, sexual harassment and trafficking, are forms of gender-based violence.

This action plan seeks to enhance the safety of Territorians:

• through a focus on empowering communities through education and awareness raising
• by celebrating positive community role models and those who seek to make our community safer.

Access to employment and financial security can be difficult for some groups.

These groups include people:

• who live in remote places
• on visas that restrict them from working or accessing financial support
• who can't access childcare or caring respite.

Australia is one of the most occupationally segregated countries in the world.

Female-dominated professions such as social work, childcare, healthcare, education, retail trade, and administrative and support services are traditionally lower-paid.

This is compared to male-dominated professions such as mining, construction, financial and insurance services, and information media and telecommunications.

Women are also overrepresented in lower-paid, part-time or precarious employment and are more likely to work in the informal economy.

Children and adults should be encouraged to consider non-traditional areas of study and occupations for their gender, so there are more:

• girls and women in the science, technology or engineering fields
• boys and men in teaching and caring fields.

Young parents need to be encouraged and supported to remain in training or education. By doing so, they can pursue their full potential and be supported in their parenting.

The composition of decision-making bodies should reflect the people they directly impact.

These decision-making bodies dictate:

• where resources are allocated
• which issues are addressed
• who benefits from actions taken.

Encouraging participation in this decision-making process and creating leadership positions can drive innovation and foster economic growth.

Promoting and recognising the below allows for this possibility of innovation:

• the importance of community role models and leaders
• differences in decision-making processes and governance models between cultures

Gender equality in leadership and decision-making is not just about who is represented or leading. It is also about who is:

• listened to by leaders
• able to contribute or have a voice to influence decision-making.

This action plan will undertake activities to increase gender equality in decision-making and design resources that develop leadership skills.

By doing so, we can ensure decisions are made more reflective of the communities they affect.

This means acknowledging that inequality is experienced differently by different groups of people.

It takes into account individual lived experiences. It also acknowledges people's inherent capacity and resilience.

This means providing fairness and justice in the distribution resources and benefits.

Society is not a level playing field – some groups and individuals may need different levels of assistance to achieve the same outcome.

This means what is counted and what is reported is important.

It is critical that data and evidence is able to tell us where to put our efforts and energy and for us to understand if we are making improvements.

Rigid gender roles and stereotypes are recognised as the key drivers of gender-based violence.

These gender stereotypes are harmful when they limit a:

• person’s ability to have autonomy over their lives
• person’s potential or capacity for growth, to pursue a career or make choices.

They're very harmful when they're used as an excuse to control another person or hurt them.

Because social change can take time.

We have committed to a determined, steady, consistent approach to drive generational change and increase gender equality over time.