Resourcing First Nations Enterprises: Insights from a Social Enterprise Development Learning Community

Resourcing First Nations Enterprises is a 2026 report from the First Nations Projects Institute, commissioned by Social Enterprise Australia as part of the Australian Government's Social Enterprise Development Initiative. It draws on conversations with around 25 First Nations business leaders, social enterprise founders, and finance professionals across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand over nine months.

The report documents nine key barriers that First Nations enterprises face when trying to access funding. These include scarce and competitive funding pools, burdensome application processes, slow and unpredictable government responses, and the near-total absence of impact investment (capital directed toward social and environmental outcomes alongside financial returns). Start-up enterprises face the sharpest disadvantage, often locked out of both grants and commercial finance because they lack the track record funders require.

Alongside the barriers, the report shares examples of funding relationships that work. These are characterised by culturally grounded design, First Nations-led decision-making, trust-based rather than compliance-heavy processes, and a focus on outcomes over outputs. A case study from Aotearoa New Zealand shows what becomes possible when funding processes are built from the ground up with Indigenous communities rather than adapted from mainstream templates.

The report closes with 24 recommendations for funders, government, and the sector. These cover simplifying application processes, placing First Nations people in genuine decision-making roles, reforming government agencies, and building infrastructure for blended finance and knowledge sharing. This report is most useful for funders, policymakers, and social enterprise support organisations wanting to understand the systemic barriers First Nations enterprises face and what more effective resourcing looks like.