Culturally and linguistically appropriate communication creates valuable and meaningful program outcomes. Effective communication helps break down barriers, improves access to services and achieves better outcomes for multicultural and multifaith communities.
In 2024–25 DPC worked with the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) and other states and territories to develop the NAATI Language Services Provider Endorsement Model. The model will deliver a national quality assurance framework to promote sector-wide consistency across Australia. By imposing baseline requirements such as using NAATI-credentialled practitioners, a shared code of conduct and new data reporting processes, the endorsement model will help ensure language services are higher quality, more consistent and more accessible for those who rely on them (DPC).
The Interpreter Scholarship Program offers scholarships to study a tertiary qualification for interpreting and translating at RMIT University. The program addresses the shortage of qualified interpreters and translators in priority community languages.
In 2024–25 DPC funded more than 100 students to become qualified interpreters in more than 30 priority languages including new and emerging languages. DPC also worked with program partners RMIT, NAATI and LanguageLoop to create a pathway into the language services industry by inviting graduates to apply for work and mentoring opportunities and by offering extra support to achieve NAATI certification (DPC: $320,000 in 2024–25).
Case study – Diploma of Interpreting course for the Karen language
The Karen people are one of many ethnic refugee groups from Myanmar (formerly Burma), having arrived in Australia from the early 2000s. Many of Victoria’s Karen-speaking population live in Greater Bendigo where Karen is the second most popular language spoken at home after English.
In recent years, several regional service providers have identified a critical shortage of Karen interpreters in the City of Greater Bendigo, creating significant negative consequences for the local community and service delivery providers. This impacted the ability of health providers to address complex health issues and provide continuity of care.
At the same time, several Karen-speaking residents expressed interest in becoming qualified interpreters. But course fees and travel to undertake an interpreting course in Melbourne were a significant barrier.
In early 2024 Multicultural Affairs (DPC) funded a Diploma of Interpreting course for the Karen language in Bendigo. The course began in July 2024 with 21 students. The Karen-speaking instructor is a former Interpreter Scholarship Program graduate and is teaching the students to translate terminology used in a range of specialist settings, including health.
In 2025, 19 students graduated from the program. Graduates receive specialised support from NAATI to practise their language skills and prepare for the NAATI certification test to become a qualified interpreter.
| Department | Publication/resource | Description | Languages |
|---|---|---|---|
| DFFH | Emergencies in Victoria: Managing your emotional wellbeing and accessing Emergency Relief Payments guide | This guide will support affected people to:
| Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Greek, Hindi, Italian, Punjabi, Vietnamese |
| DFFH | The Orange Door brochure: ‘Men who use abusive or controlling behaviour at home or in a relationship’ | This brochure outlines the help and support The Orange Door offers to men who use abusive or controlling behaviour at home or in a relationship. It is specific to each area of the state and includes local The Orange Door contact information. The brochure was first available in 2018 and updated in 2021. In the 2021 update, the brochure included input from No To Violence. | Amharic, Arabic, Assyrian, Bengali, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Dari, Dinka, Dutch, Falam Chin, Farsi, Filipino, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hakha Chin, Hazaragi, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Karenni, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Korean, Macedonian, Maltese, Mizo, Nepali, Nuer, Pashto, Polish, Punjabi, Russian, Sinhalese, Spanish, Somali, Swahili, S’gaw Karen, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Woi-wurrung, Zomi |
| DFFH | The Unsaid Says A Lot | The Unsaid Says A Lot campaign was Australia’s first government-led awareness campaign created with and for trans and gender diverse communities. The campaign highlights the many instances of discrimination the trans and gender diverse community face. The campaign encourages all Victorians to take meaningful steps towards inclusion and allyship. | Languages include Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Vietnamese |
| DFFH | Big Housing Build public understanding campaign – multicultural audiences | Homes Victoria’s Big Housing Build public understanding campaign aims to increase awareness and understanding of the Big Housing Build and High-rise Redevelopment program. | Languages included Arabic, Indonesian, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Vietnamese |
| DH | Child and Maternal Health Survey | Information for survey participants promoted on social media in 10 languages. | Chinese, Punjabi, Vietnamese, Hazaragi, Dari, Burmese, Khmer, Arabic, Chin (Hakha), Pashto |
| DH | My Surgical Journey | Information for consumers was translated into 5 extra languages. | Additional translated languages include Dari, Hazaragi, Italian, Karen, Turkish |
| DH | Urgent Care Services Victoria | A factsheet about Victoria’s 3 free urgent care services — Nurse-on-Call, Urgent Care Clinics and Virtual Emergency Care — was translated into 8 languages. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Greek, Italian, Punjabi, Turkish, Vietnamese |
| DH | Urgent Concern Helpline Pilot | Posters and a flyer with information about the Urgent Concern Helpline Pilot were translated into 10 languages for pilot sites to print and display. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Greek, Hazaragi, Italian, Khmer, Punjabi, Turkish, Vietnamese |
| DH | Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals (MHWL) | Translated web content in 10 languages and in-language videos of community leaders promoting MHWL. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Greek, Italian, Macedonian, Nepali, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish, Vietnamese |
| DH | Annual influenza campaign — Don’t Risk It | In-language webpages, radio, social media tiles and copy. | Arabic, Cantonese, Hazaragi, Hindi, Mandarin, Punjabi, Urdu, Vietnamese |
| DH | Information about the RSV Mother and Infant Protection Program (RSV-MIPP) included on the Vaccine Side Effects factsheet | Updated the Vaccine Side Effects factsheet to include the new RSV-MIPP program for newborns. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Greek, Italian, Turkish, Vietnamese |
| DH | Factsheet: Residential Aged Care — research information for residents and families | Translated factsheet on the ELUCIDAR project occurring in aged care facilities on using UV light to combat airborne pathogens. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Traditional), Greek, Italian, Korean, Sinhalese |
| DJCS | Assistance to apply for the Financial Assistance Scheme | Website content communicated in 20 languages other than English. | Amharic, Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Dari, Farsi (Persian), French, Greek, Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Nepali, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish, Tamil, Turkish, Vietnamese |
| DJSIR | Business Victoria website | Translated public holiday hours information on the Business Victoria website. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Croatian, Greek, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Macedonian, Persian (Farsi), Polish, Russian, Sinhalese, Spanish, Thai, Turkish, Vietnamese |
| DJSIR | Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) | The DJSIR Customer Contact Centre uses translating services to help deliver various programs. Customers can initiate calls through the TIS number or the contact centre can bring in an interpreter or call with one. | Many languages offered Most used: Arabic, Cantonese, Mandarin, Punjabi, Vietnamese |
| DTP | Translation services for telephone customer support | A customer service line is available for people needing support in their native language (e.g. assistance with myki card enquiries). | Mandarin is the most requested language |
| DEECA | Cat Management Strategy: Actions 1 & 2 Responsible cat ownership | Factsheets for communities and councils in English and key multicultural languages that promote responsible cat ownership. The material encourages microchipping, desexing, cat containment and positive attitudes towards cats. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Vietnamese |
| DEECA | The Future Will Thank You publications | The Future Will Thank You online video and radio publication was advertised to reach multicultural communities. It promotes biosecurity practices on farms. | Filipino, Mandarin, Punjabi, Vietnamese |
| DGS | Stay safe online: in-language content to help multicultural communities stay safe online | The ‘Stay safe online’ web presence supports multicultural communities to develop strong online habits including through cyber-safety. The languages selected were based on Census data of the top languages spoken at home by Victorians with nil-to-low English proficiency. | Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Khmer, Punjabi, Vietnamese |
| DGS | Know the Funda-rentals: information on new rental reforms | The Consumer Affairs Victoria Funda-rentals campaign raised awareness of changes to Victoria’s rental laws prior to their introduction in November 2025. | Arabic, Cantonese, Greek, Italian, Mandarin, Vietnamese |
Interpreting and translation Service
| Department | Expenditure ($ excluding GST) | Percentage of reported government expenditure on interpretation and translation (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Education | 3,428,958 | 9.58% |
| Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action | 8,971 | 0.03% |
| Department of Families, Fairness and Housing | 4,957,080 | 13.85% |
| Department of Government Services | 252,112 | 0.70% |
| Department of Health | 21,002,379 | 58.68% |
| Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions | 1,681,734 | 4.70% |
| Department of Justice and Community Safety | 3,025,176 | 8.45% |
| Department of Premier and Cabinet | 1,301,283 | 3.64% |
| Department of Transport and Planning | 133,129 | 0.37% |
| Department of Treasury and Finance | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 35,790,822 |
|
Multicultural media campaigns
In 2023–24 Victorian Government policy required that departments and agencies spend at least 15% of their campaign media budget on multicultural media (Table 5 and Table 6 show Victorian Government multicultural media campaign expenditure as a percentage of total media campaign expenditure from 2016–17 to 2024–25).4
DH’s Right Care, Right Time campaign aimed to raise awareness of urgent care services for non-life-threatening healthcare needs, including Nurse-on-Call, Virtual Emergency Care and Urgent Care Clinics.
The department worked with Optimum Media Direction to identify effective multicultural media outlets and created translated materials in Arabic, Cantonese, Greek, Italian, Mandarin, Punjabi, Turkish and Vietnamese.
Using a mix of media channels and tailored messaging, the campaign improved awareness and access to urgent care services across diverse communities. The campaign website housed translated factsheets for more detailed information on the services.
DH’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals are free services for people aged 26 or older. They provide treatment, care and support for mental health and wellbeing. DH worked with Optimum Media Direction to identify effective multicultural media outlets and created translated materials in Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Greek, Italian, Macedonian, Nepali, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese.
DTP’s Passenger Safety campaign is part of a long-term strategy to reduce unwanted sexual and antisocial behaviour on and around our public transport network. A key focus is encouraging the most vulnerable communities to report incidents using Victoria Police’s STOPIT tool. Materials were developed in Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Dari, Karen, Khmer, Korean, Punjabi, Turkish and Vietnamese for radio, social media and digital display.
In 2025 the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions (DJSIR) ran the latest phase of the Learn Local campaign. Around 200 community organisations deliver Learn Local courses — inclusive, locally based and government-subsidised training programs designed to help adults build the skills they need for work, study and everyday life. The campaign aimed to promote Learn Local providers and courses to potential learners from across Victoria, including multicultural and First Peoples communities.
To help raise awareness of these opportunities, particularly among those aged 35 to 64 from diverse backgrounds, DJSIR implemented a statewide social media ambassador campaign.
Nine influencers and community leaders developed bespoke content for their channels and audiences, including in-language content. Influencers generated 45 unique pieces of content, resulting in more than 2.2 million views and 2,800 interactions.
DPC’s Real Help. Right Now. campaign raised awareness of more than 90 government savings benefits to ease cost-of-living pressures including energy bill relief, education assistance and transport savings.
The campaign encouraged Victorians to visit the Savings Finder page on the Service Victoria website to learn about benefits. The campaign was translated into Arabic, Cantonese, Greek, Hindi, Italian, Mandarin, Punjab, Tagalog, Turkish and Vietnamese (DPC: $790,000 in 2024–25).
Table 5 details departmental multicultural media campaign expenditure as a percentage of total media campaign expenditure in 2024–25 compared with 2023–24.
| Department | 2024–25 expenditure (%) | 2023–24 expenditure (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Education | 16.4 | 16.2 |
| Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action | 12.7 | 14.9 |
| Department of Families, Fairness and Housing | 17.1 | 15.2 |
| Department of Government Services | 10.1 | n/a |
| Department of Health | 21.3 | 16.6 |
| Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions | 22.6 | 29.6 |
| Department of Justice and Community Safety | 17.6 | 16.6 |
| Department of Premier and Cabinet | 16.4 | 50.16 |
| Department of Transport and Planning | 17.9 | 21.4 |
| Department of Treasury and Finance7 | n/a | n/a |
Table 6 shows Victorian Government multicultural media campaign expenditure as a percentage of total media campaign expenditure from 2016–17 to 2024–25.
| Financial year | Multicultural expenditure (%) |
|---|---|
| 2024–25 | 15.6 |
| 2023–24 | 15.0 |
| 2022–23 | 6.7 |
| 2021–22 | 10.4 |
| 2020–21 | 9.6 |
| 2019–20 | 7.6 |
| 2018–19 | 5.0 |
| 2017–18 | 5.2 |
| 2016–17 | 6.0 |
Footnotes
4 Prior to 2023–24 the Victorian Government required departments and agencies to spend at least 5% of their campaign advertising budget on multicultural media.
5 These figures only include departmental expenditure (not portfolio agencies) for campaign advertising. They also exclude expenditure on interstate and international advertising because the government’s 15% multicultural campaign expenditure policy only applies to advertising within Victoria.
6 This value includes the ‘Gig Workers Awareness campaign’, run by DPC in 2024–25.
7 DTF did not undertake any campaign advertising during 2023–24 or 2024–25. Translations for budget papers are funded by DPC.
8 This includes departments and agencies combined.
Updated