Benchmarking leading practice in Aboriginal business procurement in the extractive resource sector

This report examines leading practice in Aboriginal procurement in the extractive resource sector in Australia. The focus is on Aboriginal business engagement, as distinct to direct employment, by extractive companies and their contractors. That said, recognising that Aboriginal businesses typically demonstrate higher rates of Aboriginal employment than non-Aboriginal businesses, increasing Aboriginal employment is a major underlying motivation for the project. The report aims to identify the components that resource companies need to have in place to maximise Aboriginal business participation in their supply chain. This includes the supply of goods and services to mining and oil and gas projects, with particular attention to engagement with primary and subsidiary contractors. The purpose is to benchmark leading practice in Aboriginal procurement using the insights gained from research on initiatives and approaches that have been applied by various resource companies in their efforts to engage Aboriginal businesses. Based on the factors identified, a framework is proposed to enable evaluation of resource companies’ undertakings with respect to Aboriginal procurement. The framework proposed in this report provides a basis for discussion and further development. The report is designed to complement existing publications on local procurement. In particular it should be read alongside the CSRM SME Procurement Guide and publications such as IFC’s Guide to Getting Started in Local Content.