New plan to protect Australian children from abuse

CANBERRA: The Australian government has revealed its new plan to protect children from abuse and neglect.

The federal government has released two 10-year action plans created with state and territory governments to improve the safety and wellbeing of children, reports Xinhua news agency.

The first plan aims to address the needs of all young people while the second focuses on indigenous families in a bid to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in the youth protection system.

Under the First Nations Training Strategy, governments have agreed to increase investment in indigenous communities to boost the availability of support services.

Of 45,300 children in out-of-home care across Australia, 43 per cent are indigenous despite making up only 3 per cent of the population.

Releasing the new plan, Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth and Linda Burney, minister for indigenous Australians, said it was a historic moment.

"The number of First Nations children being removed from families remains out of control. It is so high and it is alarming and it must come down," Burney said.

"The plan focuses on early intervention and prevention measures at a child, family and system level, which is crucial to keeping more First Nations families together and safe."

Over its 10-year lifespan, the plan's goals include supporting the cultural needs of indigenous children in care, improving awareness of how the system works and putting indigenous self-determination at the centre of the system.