August 2020 – Page 2 – Ethnic Council of Shepparton and District

Regional Victorians Urged To Get Tested

August 19, 2020 by Ethnic Council

Regional Victorians experiencing coronavirus symptoms are encouraged to get tested this week – to ensure we find as many coronavirus cases as possible and protect regional communities.

Since January, 360,000 tests have been processed in regional Victoria with almost 90 testing sites now open.

To date, regional Victorians have done a remarkable job staying home and slowing the spread and while coronavirus numbers are lower in regional areas than metropolitan Melbourne, new data confirms some concerning trends.

NATIONAL Multilingual News Service

May 27, 2021August 17, 2020 by Ethnic Council

The NEMBC has started a Multilingual News Service (MNS) and is producing daily news bulletins in 6 languages with plans for expansion.

The MNS is produced by ethnic community radio broadcasters in Spanish, Hindi, Arabic, Punjabi, Pacific Islander English and Mandarin with plans to include Indonesian, Vietnamese and an Asian English program this week.

These daily 5 minute news bulletins are available for free to any ethnic community broadcasters that would like to play them on their programs. Listen to the programs on Soundcloud or request an MP3 file be sent to you from admin@nembc.org.au to receive them daily before midday from Monday to Saturday.

Visas: Victoria will not re-nominate those who are subject to a Section 48

August 17, 2020 by Ethnic Council

The Victorian government has made it clear that applicants who are subject to a section 48 bar where their nomination has expired, and they are unable to leave Australia, will not be re-nominated. The announcement comes as a blow for many applicants who could not leave Australia to apply for their new visa from offshore.

Australian citizenship processing resumes in capital cities

August 14, 2020 by Ethnic Council

Australian citizenship testing and interviews that were suspended earlier this year due to the coronavirus pandemic are resuming in capital cities across the country, with the exception of Melbourne, due the surge in Coronavirus activity in Victoria.

The federal government says the appointments have started in Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth and will also resume in Canberra, Hobart and Darwin later this month. Citizenship testing is conducted by Services Australia.

The suspension of processing had caused widespread concern among pending applicants, who were worried about a growing backlog.

Listen to Stage 3 messages for Regional Victoria

August 13, 2020August 12, 2020 by Ethnic Council

Department of Health and Human Services have provided audio / sound messages in language for people in Regional Victoria. Messages are provided in Arabic, Dari, Dinka, Farsi, French, Gujarati, Hazaragi, Hindi, Indonesian, Malaysian, Pashto, Samoan, Swahili, Turkish and Urdu languages.

Fast-Tracked Mental Health Support For People In Need

August 11, 2020 by Ethnic Council

Victoria’s mental health system will receive nearly $60 million in an additional boost to get more Victorians support when they need it – now and after the pandemic is over and its effects are still being felt – as we continue to work together to fight this deadly virus.

A new Call-to-Test service

August 11, 2020 by Ethnic Council

Beginning today is the new Call-to-Test service, providing in-home coronavirus testing to Victorians who would otherwise be unable to get tested. This includes older Victorians, Victorians with a disability, carers and those with an illness that might prevent them from leaving home. For eligible callers located in Melbourne, testers will visit within 48 hours.