Latitude 12 – a body established to help strengthen regional organisations – has granted East Arnhem Regional Council a dividend payment of $600,000.
The Board of Latitude 12 Pty Ltd, at its meeting held on 24 August in Darwin, unanimously approved the dividend payment to Council, a return on its initial investment in the company.
Since its inception in 2010, Latitude 12 has grown to support a range of functions for the Local Government, Territory Government, Indigenous Organisations and private enterprise, including financial and payroll processing¸ management reporting and budgeting, records management, internal audit and risk consulting, workplace health and safety advisory as well as Strategic and operational Human resources.
Latitude 12 Chairman Adrian Collins said at the meeting, “The audited Financial Statements for the Year ending 30 June 2015, shows that over the past five years we have built up a substantial Net Equity for Latitude 12.
“The Dividend payment clearly demonstrates that the investment by East Arnhem Regional Council has proved to be a sound commercial decision and that all the invested funds have been safeguarded.
“The dividend payout reflects an average Return on Investment of 27.4 percent per annum for each of its five years of investment.”
Council President Banambi Wunungmurra said Latitude 12 has greatly assisted regional Northern Territory communities.
“Latitude 12 was born out of a vision to provide cost effective shared services and specialist knowledge to remote and regional Australia while at the same time generating additional revenue for community benefit.
“The formation of Latitude 12 has nurtured and developed into a path that is not just about ‘Closing the Gap’ but rather ‘Opening the Door’ for the East Arnhem Regional Council and
its Communities.”
