The Ngurratjuta Aboriginal Corporation: A model for understanding Northern Territory royalty associations

Abstract

Some 25 years after the implementation of the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (ALRA) and with the legislation currently under review and 'at risk', as some have argued, it is timely to reconsider the class of organisation referred to as 'royalty associations'. This paper examines the organisational history, objectives, and activities of the oldest royalty association in the Northern Territory, the Ngurratjuta/Pmara Ntjarra Aboriginal Corporation (hereafter referred to as 'the NAC' or 'the Corporation') and presents key findings made by the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research's recent review of that organisation. The opportunities and challenges encountered by the NAC are described in order to highlight lessons relevant to all indigenous royalty associations.