Remote Indigenous Land and Infrastructure Program Office

Introduction to the Program Office

The Remote Indigenous Land and Infrastructure Program Office (RILIPO) was established to facilitate development across 16 remote discrete Indigenous Local Government areas, as well as the communities of Thursday Island, Horn Island, Coen, Mossman Gorge and Mona Mona in Queensland.

RILIPO works in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples through its representatives, at the national, state and local level to embed built-environment planning initiatives to facilitate remote community development on behalf of government; improve economic opportunities; and meet the needs, aspirations and expectations of each community and its leadership.

RILIPO coordinates the following programs in Queensland's discrete communities:

• Native Title compliance including Indigenous Land Use Agreements
• Environmental Precinct Planning
• Cadastral Survey
• Master Planning
• Economic Precinct Planning
• Town Planning (including Land use planning schemes and development applications)
• Infrastructure Planning
• Infrastructure Investment Coordination
• Tenure resolution including reserve divestment.
• Assisting whole of government agencies in Maximising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment, business and training opportunities from significant infrastructure investments.
• Home ownership and commercial leasing
• Cultural Heritage agreements.

RILIPO’s initiatives, training, advice, support and knowledge transfer are critical to the continuity needed for improving economic outcomes and maximising environmental strategies to build healthy and vibrant communities and brings the following benefits to community and government:

• supporting and empowering local decision-making
• consistency in state dealings across Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
• strengthened relationships within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
• improved surveying within Indigenous communities
• enhanced employment and business opportunities
• statutory-compliant land dealings and infrastructure
• enabling development to occur on Indigenous Trust lands
• facilitation of necessary essential services, including environmental health infrastructure
• improved land-use planning by Councils/Trustees
• providing pathways to home ownership
• Native Title compliance
• Cultural Heritage agreements.

What does 'engaging with communities' mean?

For RILIPO, 'engaging and partnering with communities' means listening carefully, discussing and consulting with Traditional Owners, Trustees and Councils about investment and development opportunities, as well as to collaborate and plan for community aspirations.

This approach underpins Local Thriving Communities as initiatives are co-designed and delivered in partnership with communities. RILIPO’s programs assist the communities to proactively direct funding to advance their community visions. This relationship is built on a working partnership, by engaging with community leaders, stakeholders, and government agencies in the delivery of built environment programs and initiatives which are coordinated through Technical Working Group and Specialist Project meetings.

What does the Program Office deliver to communities?

Strategic land administration planning

• undertakes specialist Environmental Precinct Planning, Cadastral Survey, Master Planning, Economic Zone Precinct Planning and Town Planning
• negotiates whole of government ILUAs to allow for development in community
• enables cultural heritage clearance procedures for infrastructure development via Cultural Heritage Agreements
• uses a coordinated approach to addressing different land tenure arrangements in a community, for example, reserve divestments, boundary adjustments and leasing

Whole-of-government coordination

• ensures continuous and stable localised employment and economic opportunities by coordination of Infrastructure Planning and Infrastructure Investment

Coordinated leasing negotiations

• enables the government to invest in new housing and other essential infrastructure by coordinating state leasing in communities

Home ownership

• assists individuals, Trustees and councils to enable home ownership in communities where local indigenous residents want to own their own home
• assists individuals, Trustees, and Councils to enable commercial leasing to enhance business opportunities

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment and training

• maximises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment, training and business development opportunities coming out of the government investment in social housing and infrastructure construction in the discrete communities.

What does all of this achieve for remote communities?

RILIPO’s initiatives, training, advice, support and knowledge transfer are critical to the continuity needed for improving economic outcomes and maximising environmental strategies to build healthy and vibrant communities. and will help facilitate:

• new housing and infrastructure development
• local employment opportunities
• better use of government assets (for example, houses and offices) better service delivery for water, power and other essentials
• long-term planning to encourage development and private home ownership opportunities
• coordinated approach to dealing with native title, cultural heritage and other land-related matters.

Which Local Government Authorities does the Program Office engage with?

Aurukun, Cherbourg, Doomadgee, Hope Vale, Kowanyama, Lockhart River, Mapoon, Mornington Island, Napranum, Northern Peninsula Area, Palm Island, Pormpuraaw, Thursday Island, Torres Strait Islands, Woorabinda, Wujal Wujal and Yarrabah.

Contact us

• Phone: 07 4252 5129
• Email: rilipo@dsdsatsip.qld.gov.au