AACAP parade marks ten years’ service
Volume 11, No. 57, November 30, 2006
WO2 Graham McBean

Inspection: Mal Brough, representing the Prime Minister, reviews the 21 Const Sqn parade with Lt-Col Bill Thomson, 6ESR.

GALLIPOLI Barracks welcomed home the 2006 Army Aboriginal Community Assistance Program (AACAP) contingent in style on November 17, and celebrated the 10th anniversary of the program.

The 130-strong contingent based largely of the 21 Const Sqn delivered $3 million in construction, training and health outcomes in the Borroloola Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory.

A parade at 21 Const Sqn’s home at Gallipoli Barracks in Brisbane featured a long list of dignitaries including the Minister for Indigenous Affairs Mal Brough, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Defence Senator Sandy Macdonald and CA Lt-Gen Peter Leahy.

Also participating in the parade were eight soldiers from Norforce who provided an important liaison element on the ground in the Borroloola community.

Mr Brough congratulated the Army on the work completed since 1996.

“I congratulate the construction squadrons for their hard work and commitment over the past 10 years to improve living conditions for Indigenous people in remote Australia,” Mr Brough said.

Sen Macdonald highlighted the valuable training element of the AACAP deployments.

“AACAP is a unique program that delivers critical services to communities and provides training for soldiers in skills they will use overseas,” Sen Macdonald said.

OC 21 Const Sqn (and AACAP contingent OC) Maj Grant Halstead also emphasised the training gains to soldiers.

“This deployment saw us deploy 3000km into a remote area and deliver construction effect, which is what we would do as a unit if we were on operations,” Maj Halstead said.

“It gets the soldiers practising their specialist trade skills in a remote environment, much akin to what we have been experiencing in operational deployment throughout the last 10 years.”

The three-month deployment to the Borroloola community saw the construction of four houses and maintenance work and the provision of courses in welding, metal working, small-engine maintenance, computing and multi-media training.

Important health outcomes included the provision of doctors and dentists who established a health clinic in the community for onsite medical care.

About $60 million has been committed to the AACAP program during the last 10 years towards the construction of more than 100 houses as well as medical centres, airfields, roads, rubbish tips, sewer works and other infrastructure.

A further $20 million will be committed to the program under the 2005 Budget initiative Addressing Indigenous Housing Needs – Healthy Indigenous Housing Continuation to extend the ACCAP program until 2009.