50 Years of Deadly: why NAIDOC Week 2026 matters for immunisation

National NAIDOC Week will be celebrated from 5–12 July 2026. This year’s celebration carries extra weight: the official theme, 50 Years of Deadly, marks 5 decades of NAIDOC Week as a national celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history, culture and achievement. 

NAIDOC’s roots go back to the activism of the 1920s and the 1938 Day of Mourning, but it was in the mid-1970s that the observance grew into the week-long, Aboriginal-led celebration recognisable today. 

Fifty years on, this year’s theme is a tribute to the Elders, organisers, artists and communities who built and sustained the movement – and a reminder of how far that work has carried the nation, while looking ahead to what's still to be done.
 

Why it matters for our sector 

For immunisation providers and researchers, NAIDOC Week is a timely prompt to reflect on equity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to carry a higher burden of several vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs), driven by a combination of factors such as access barriers, chronic disease burden and broader social determinants of health.

To help bridge these inequities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are eligible for additional vaccines funded through the National Immunisation Program (NIP). Further vaccines are also available through state- and territory-funded programs according to local disease burden. 

Improving equitable access to immunisation is also a key priority area of the National Immunisation Strategy for Australia 2025 to 2030. NCIRS works to address this priority area year-round, including through: 

• the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Immunisation Leadership Committee, led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members and supported by non-Indigenous allies 
• the Sharing Knowledge About Immunisation (SKAI) program, which helps providers have culturally safe, supportive vaccination conversations with families.

Although Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people face greater risk of severe outcomes from VPDs such as influenza, immunisation coverage remains suboptimal. However, pneumococcal vaccination coverage in older Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults has improved following the inclusion of funded pneumococcal vaccination on the NIP for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults aged 50 years and over. From 1 July, this eligibility has expanded to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults aged 25 years and over. 

Expanding eligibility and access to immunisation, alongside proactive recommendations for vaccines funded specifically for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, can improve health outcomes for these communities.

NAIDOC Week 2026 is a chance for the immunisation community to mark this milestone, attend local events and recommit to genuine partnership with Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services and communities in closing the immunisation gap.