Warning: This story contains information about suicide and distressing statistics. Please read with care and reach out for support if needed.
New Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data has revealed the highest number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander suicide deaths on record, prompting urgent calls from Indigenous peak bodies for stronger community-led responses.
The ABS recorded 306 Indigenous deaths by suicide in 2024, an 8 per cent rise on the previous year and the third consecutive annual increase.
Four in five of the deaths were Indigenous men, with suicide remaining the second leading cause of death for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males.
The data also confirmed 70 Indigenous children died by suicide between 2021 and 2024.
A quarter were aged 14 or younger, with accounting for 21 per cent of all deaths of Indigenous children.
The national picture showed 3,307 deaths by suicide last year, with Indigenous leaders saying the rising impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities is a crisis that demands immediate change.
Jointly responding to the data, three major Indigenous health peaks said governments must prioritise investment in community-designed prevention.
Centre of Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention director, Professor Pat Dudgeon, said the most effective solutions already exist within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and organisations.
"Communities must be empowered to develop their own suicide prevention solutions that recognise the needs of community members and support their culture and strengths," she said.
National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) executive director, Monica Barolits-McCabe, said the rise in suicides shows why locally led approaches are essential.
Ms Barolits-McCabe noted the evidence is clear that Indigenous communities know what works when given resources and authority.
"Across more than 30 communities, our Culture Care Connect program is showing what happens when solutions are designed and led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people," she said.
"These community-governed initiatives are building networks of care, strengthening wellbeing, and proving that when we invest in community-led models, the outcomes are lasting and far-reaching."
Gayaa Dhuwi CEO Rachel Fishlock said the escalating numbers show that the current system is not fit for purpose.
"The Productivity Commission Review of the National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement has confirmed what communities have been saying for decades: that the current system architecture is not fit for purpose," Ms Fishlock said.
"The latest data is devastating and reflects a system that continues to fail our people because Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership remains absent from national decision-making.
"To turn this crisis around, governments must work with us to embed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing as a core pillar of mental health and suicide prevention reform."
The joint peaks said Western Australia and South Australia recorded the highest Indigenous suicide rates, while New South Wales experienced the largest increase, with its rate doubling across the past decade.
They also warned the rise stands in contrast to small declines among non-Indigenous Australians, reinforcing that the widening gap is a direct result of systems failing to respond to Indigenous needs. The national data echoes those concerns.
Suicide was the fifth leading cause of death for Indigenous people last year. It remained the second leading cause for Indigenous men with deaths in remote and very remote communities among the highest recorded in five years.
Occupational data showed Indigenous men remain heavily represented in trades and technical fields, the occupation group with the highest male deaths by suicide.
Peak organisations said these figures underline the need for targeted, culturally grounded responses that address the social drivers of distress - not just clinical factors.
While launching the national dataset, Suicide Prevention Australia said the broader suicide picture remains "stubbornly high," and warned that national services are already under pressure with almost one in three Australians reaching out for help in the past 12 months.
But Indigenous leaders said the path forward is clear.
They believe strengthening Aboriginal community-controlled organisations, embedding Indigenous authority in national structures and investing in long-term, community-designed models are essential steps.
Without immediate action, they say, the gap in suicide outcomes will continue to widen.
The Indigenous health peaks also urged the public and media to follow culturally safe reporting practices and ensure crisis support services are widely promoted, including 13YARN, Brother to Brother, and Kids Helpline.
13 YARN (13 92 76)
WayAhead 9339 6000
Lifeline 13 11 14
Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491
Beyondblue 1300 22 4636
