Indigenous business owners encouraged to apply for $5,000 grants for Indigenous Business

CGU Insurance is calling for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander business owners to enter its new Awards competition to win one of five $5,000 grants to help their business thrive.

Named the CGU Wa-murayangkulang Awards, the purpose of the competition is to support First Nations business owners by providing grants for personal or professional development.

CGU Executive Manager Phil Lockyer said: “As an insurer of businesses around Australia, we’re proud to support the ambition of small business owners. The CGU Wa-murayangkulang awards aim to support the growth and skills development of indigenous small businesses which already contribute between $2.2 to $6.6 billion to Australia’s GDP annually^[1].

“We look forward to seeing the ingenious ideas and innovation that First Nations businesses bring to our communities,” said Mr Lockyer.

The competition is being run in partnership with the Melbourne Business School MURRA Indigenous Master Class Program (MURRA) alumni and 33 Creative, which is an Aboriginal owned and run communications agency.

The activity is taking place as part of CGU’s sponsorship of Indigenous Business Month, which is an initiative developed by the MURRA alumni. The month-long event focuses on business as a way of providing positive role models for young Indigenous Australians.

The competition takes its name from the local language of the Gringai people of the Wonnarua nation of the Hunter Valley NSW. Wa means to walk and murayangkulang (mura-yang-ku-lang) means forward or onward. The name was selected as it represents the opportunity for the winners to walk forward to a better future for themselves, their business and their communities.

CGU’s parent company, IAG, is a proud supporter of the reconciliation movement in Australia. Earlier this year IAG launched its third Reconciliation Action Plan, which outlines commitments such as providing employment and internship opportunities to First Nations people, as well as supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses.

To enter the competition small business owners need to go to the Indigenous Business Month website for more information, terms and conditions and to complete an application.

Competition entries are open between 13 September 2019 and 11 October 2019.