'Get back to basics': Indigenous leader Warren Mundine outlines how to help Indigenous communities after Closing the Gap report
The report said incarceration rates, the development of children, children in out-of-home care and suicide rates were 'continuing to worsen'.
'Of the 15 socio-economic targets with data available to report progress, four targets are on track, six targets show improvement but are not on track, progress for four targets is worsening and one has shown no change from the baseline,' the report read.
The report said outcomes were 'poorest' for people in remote and very remote areas.
Speaking to Sky News host Steve Price on Thursday night, Mr Mundine said the repetition of failed ideas was leading to reports just being the "same old, same old ... every year."
"[It's a] sign of madness - you keep on doing the same thing over and over again, and you think you're going to make a difference."
Mr Mundine said the government needed to 'get back to basics' and provide frameworks for investment that can create Indigenous jobs.
'It's important to do that in history and learn about things but get back to the basics that create jobs for people and [give them] training,' he said.
'Why don't we get these mining projects off the ground? Why don't we get these gas projects off to the ground?
'Why don't we get all these other projects off the ground that can actually get economic development within their community where Aboriginal people are getting jobs, running businesses and contributing to their community and growing into an economic base for them and a future for their people?'
'Why don't we turn that into an economic base where we're able then to get jobs for the parents, get education programs for the kids, and start building strong communities which are economically good and that are safe and healthy?' he said.
'This is the that we should be looking at.'
Mr Mundine said education was 'the key' in improving lives and keeping communities safe.
'You've got to get the kids into school, you've got to get into reading, writing, arithmetic, you got to get into phonics, you got to get real skills, learning about STEM and everything like that,' he said.
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