The South Australian towns of Port Augusta and Davenport will receive $12 million over 3 years in federal and state funding for youth programs.
A new "Community Partnership" will be established to allow locals to drive and trial "better coordination between state and federal investment in community services", the federal government said on Wednesday.
Minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, said the announcement was about investing in young people and helping to harness the best local solutions for the community.
"State and Commonwealth governments need to coordinate better. That's why we are establishing this new community partnership," she said.
"There's strong Aboriginal leadership in Port Augusta and it's time governments listened to what can make Port Augusta even stronger."
The announcement comes after a series of workshops in the area last year attended by over 150 people, including local First Nations community members as well as local businesses, the Port Augusta Council, and SA and Commonwealth agencies.
Short, medium, and long-term strategies and actions - many focussing on justice and education programs - have been developed by the community, the government said, and the new funding is to assist in realising some of the medium and longer-term plans.
The government also said a leadership group will be formed to finalise the "Port Augusta Community Safety and Wellbeing Plan," which has been drafted with community members over the last year. It will identify priority actions to be linked to the new funding and will establish monitoring and the evaluation of outcomes.
The ABC reported Port Augusta does not have a youth centre or children's programs.
Data shows Port Augusta ranks high for crimes related to property damage, assault and theft and has seen an 11 per cent increase in crime statistics from 2022 to 2023.
South Australia's Human Services Minister Nat Cook said the funding was in response to feedback from the community.
"Port Augusta is home to Aboriginal communities and an important waypoint for Aboriginal travellers. This makes it the perfect place to trial a new approach to community-led decision making supported by both state and federal governments," Ms Cook said.
"These regions are set for hundreds of millions of dollars of investment in hydrogen, steel and water projects in coming years – our new investment will help to build the social infrastructure to support them."
The partnership will coordinate data across programs funded by local, state, and federal governments to map services and better identify potential areas for extended or new funding.
Local MP Eddie Hughes said the money was a "huge announcement for the town".
"The next step is to continue working across all levels of government, Aboriginal communities and organisations, including South Australia's new First Nations Voice, as well as the broader Port Augusta community to agree on key funding priorities for the next two or three years," he said.
