Case study: National Agreement on Closing the Gap Developed in partnership between Australian governments and the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations, the National Agreement on Closing the Gap came into effect on 27 July 2020. Priority Reform Four of the National Agreement, ‘Shared Access to Data and Information at a Regional Level’, seeks to ensure that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have access to, and the capability to use, locally relevant data and information to set and monitor the implementation of efforts to close the gap, their priorities, and drive their own development. In this sense, this Priority Reform rests upon a recognition of data sovereignty and culturally appropriate data management as crucial elements to close the gap. This includes support for the ability of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to explore themselves what data sovereignty means at a local and regional level. Under Priority Reform Four, Commonwealth, state and territory governments have committed to implementing the data and information elements, including to: • share available, disaggregated regional data and information with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations and communities • establish partnerships between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and government agencies to improve collection, access, management, and use of data • make their data more transparent by telling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people what data they have and how it can be accessed • build capacity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations and communities to collect and use data. To achieve this outcome, Commonwealth, state, and territory governments will establish regional data projects in up to six locations across Australia, including Western Sydney in New South Wales and the Kimberley region in Western Australia. These data projects will support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to analyse and use regional specific data to help drive their own development and discussions with governments, as well as collect and access other data which they consider important. This, in turn, will support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to make decisions about their development and closing the gap. National Anti-Racism Framework Scoping Report 2022 | 91