Why getting extra migrants to swim has advantages for all of Australian society

Having by no means had publicity to open water, placing to sea was “not the most pleasant” of ordeals for Ramzi Hussaini, recalling the boat journey from South-East Asia to Australia greater than a decade in the past.

The then-teenager had simply fled his homeland of Afghanistan and located himself in yet one more encounter fraught with peril.

“Being with so many other bodies or people in the boat where you can’t even stretch your legs,” he mentioned. 

“It’s overcrowded. The water is rough. You go to sleep with water around you, and you wake up, still with water around you, spending days in the water and getting the [sun] burns.”

Like many migrants, Mr Hussaini didn’t know the best way to swim and was aquaphobic. He says a way of foreboding remained with him for these 5 lengthy days.

“So far out in the sea, you never know when you’re going to make it, whether you’re going to make it or not,” Mr Hussaini tells the ABC.

Following this “nerve-wracking” introduction to water, Mr Hussaini entered a pool for the primary time after arriving in Melbourne in 2011, coming near drowning.

“I think that was the turning point for me,” says the 31-year-old, who was motivated to take up swimming classes quickly after the incident.

Now a lifeguard in Victoria, life has come full circle for Mr Hussaini, and he has by no means appeared again.

Inequities in deadly drownings

More than 1 / 4 of Australia’s inhabitants faces a heightened danger of loss of life by drowning.

It is a staggering pool of 8.2 million and one which grows yearly as guests from world wide make their means down underneath.

The determine represents the variety of individuals born abroad, a gaggle that has universally remained amongst society’s most weak to water-related tragedies.

According to the newest National Drowning Report — compiled yearly by the Royal Life Saving Society Australia (RLSSA) — 34 per cent of all drowning fatalities over the previous 10 years have been foreign-born individuals.

Of these, 36 per cent have been new arrivals to Australia who had been within the nation for lower than 5 years.

The report notes that the native land was recognized in simply over half of all deaths, indicating that the burden borne by migrants could also be even better.

Analysing knowledge from 2005 to 2024, Canberra-based swim faculty Aquatots additionally discovered that overseas-born individuals had made up an even bigger share of drowning deaths than their share of the whole Australian inhabitants, in some years accounting for as much as 40 per cent of deadly drownings.

So, why the over-representation?

While there are a selection of danger components, analysis reveals some widespread threads tying multicultural communities’ relationship with water.

First, there’s the overall unfamiliarity with native waterways for individuals who are new to Australia.

The report reveals that within the 12 months to July, 43 per cent of the 357 deadly drownings came about in coastal areas, together with seashores, the ocean or harbour, and rock swimming pools, and 34 per cent occurred at inland areas similar to rivers and lakes.

“We need to be really careful not to assume that people are ignorant or that they haven’t had experience before, because a lot of people actually have, but that knowledge doesn’t necessarily translate to the conditions here in Australia,” RLSSA’s analysis and coverage supervisor Stacey Pidgeon informed the ABC.

But many migrants have “simply not had the exposure or experience” of being round water earlier than coming to Australia, or the chance to study primary swimming abilities of their residence nations.

“Some cultures have a relationship with water that’s [perhaps] more around doing the chores or employment.”

Children and adults of a low socio-economic standing, distant or regional dwellers, Indigenous communities, and males are among the many different teams which can be at a a lot better danger of drowning than the typical Australian.

People from numerous backgrounds face a number of boundaries that restrict their participation in swimming and water security schooling, each of their homelands and after coming to Australia.

They embrace restrictive cultural or spiritual attitudes to water actions, lack of entry to water our bodies or aquatic infrastructure, value and transportation points, a concern of water, the absence of neighborhood position fashions, or a way of indifference to the worth of understanding the best way to swim.

Drowning deaths by homeland

Long-term traits present that the majority drowning deaths in Australia are these of migrants from Asian nations.

In January final 12 months, Victoria noticed its deadliest seaside tragedy in 20 years when 4 members of an Indian household — Reema Sondhi, Jagjeet Singh Anand, Suhani Anand and Kriti Bedi — misplaced their lives at an unpatrolled seaside in Phillip Island.

Three of the victims have been Melbourne locals, and one was visiting from India.

Less than three months later, one other Indian household was left shattered after father-son duo Gurjinder Singh and Dharmvir Singh died in a Gold Coast lodge pool whereas attempting to rescue a two-year-old from drowning.

Data shows practically one in 5 drowning victims in Australia between 2013 and 2023 have been individuals born in India, Nepal and China.

And within the 12 months to July this 12 months, the best variety of deaths have been individuals born within the UK, China, India, Malaysia, Nepal and Papua New Guinea.

Harpreet Kandra, a Melbourne educational and Sikh neighborhood chief who was motivated to determine a 10-week swim program after the Port Phillip tragedy, mentioned drowning prevention methods for grownup migrants wanted to be unconventional, with hands-on coaching prioritised over consciousness.

“You have to connect with people rather than simply telling them ‘this is water safety,'” he informed the ABC.

“The second you allow a classroom setting, you neglect issues … so we thought, we have to get individuals into water and make them study swimming.

“We do not promise that they are going to grow to be swimming consultants, however as soon as individuals get into water, they perceive the pressure of water. They perceive what enjoyable they will have in water. And that is the place we begin telling them that it is vital for us to have interaction with water in a protected means.”

Learning how to swim is typically not a priority in migrants’ early years of settlement, unlike, for instance, obtaining a driver’s licence, securing housing and employment, or taking English classes.

Dr Kandra mentioned a perspective shift was mandatory the place extra individuals noticed swimming not solely as a life ability however a multifaceted exercise that enriched the migrant expertise.

Bridging a cultural disconnect

Research shows most migrants see swimming as an important a part of assimilating into Australian society, by which water-based actions are central to the lifestyle.

Having more multicultural communities engaged in swim programs would make people “really feel welcome” in the country, said Ms Pidgeon, fostering social cohesion and a sense of belonging.

“Being round water is such a key a part of Australian tradition … and adults I spoke to from migrant backgrounds felt like they have been nearly excluded as a result of they could not swim,” she mentioned.

But despite having the desire to attain swimming skills, many from culturally and linguistically diverse communities — particularly adults — face three key barriers to participating: a fear of water, cultural norms, and pragmatic concerns around cost and transport, according to a recent public health study.

For Sarah Scarce, who runs the Queensland-based Aqua English Project, a program aimed at empowering refugees and new arrivals to Australia through swimming and language, those barriers are opportunities for change.

“Nobody talks brazenly about what to do whenever you’re in your interval and also you swim. Nobody talks brazenly about kids needing to put on swimwear, not a standard nappy,” she informed the ABC.

“The largest one is on the entrance desk. How welcome do you’re feeling whenever you come to the swimming pool? Does that particular person’s physique language point out ‘hey, I’m actually joyful to have you ever right here’? If they only get pissed off [with you], it’s totally tough.

Ms Scarce mentioned methods to take care of value and transport considerations included delivering swim packages in locations simply accessible by practice or bus, and providing value concessions for households.

As for serving to individuals overcome a concern of water, she says being affected person, reassuring, setting lifelike targets and “creating a community in the pool” goes a good distance.

“Our programming is collectivist because a lot of the cultures we get people from are collectivist, whereas swimming and Australian life in general is actually not of a collectivist mindset. It’s an individual mindset,” she mentioned.

“Getting someone to the pool isn’t always easy, so you have to be really sure that whatever it is that you’re delivering makes them want to come back.

“The artwork of constructing somebody really feel welcome is a very huge factor … and that is what’s going to make somebody keep.”

Since its inception nearly 20 years ago, The Aqua English Project has evolved from a drowning prevention initiative to a holistic program that places an emphasis on the value addition swimming offers to various aspects of life.

Ms Scarce mentioned having the identical shift happen throughout Australia’s aquatic business wouldn’t solely enhance migrants’ private well-being however result in broader societal advantages.

Swimming skills useful for self, financial system

Aside from directly aiding drowning prevention efforts, participation in swim programs helps adult migrants build fitness, improve personal well-being and develop positive social relationships, as per RLSSA research.

For many new arrivals to Australia, mothers who may be primary caregivers, people from marginalised communities, or those who may be victims of abuse or carrying other trauma, swimming can also act as a social outlet.

“Women who’ve suffered home violence — if you will get them right into a pool, they make buddies with one another and begin serving to one another handle psychological stress,” said Dr Harpeet Kandra, whose swim programs have 70 per cent female participants.

“If they study swimming, they really feel very empowered.”

Swimming can be a highly recommended form of exercise for older people aged over 65 because it helps with mobility and slows down ageing, thereby decreasing the burden on the medical system.

A 2021 report by PwC discovered that Australia’s aquatic business generates well being advantages value $2.5 billion per 12 months, together with by means of a discount within the burden of illness, improved psychological well being outcomes and lesser illness-related absenteeism within the office.

The combined social, health and economic value provided by aquatic facilities annually is $9.1 billion, according to the report, with more than a quarter of that contributing directly to Australia’s GDP.

Being able to swim opens up a host of employment, training and competitive sport opportunities for Australians, and more migrants in the mix means there is more scope for cultural diversification in those spheres.

As of 2025, Australia’s aquatic workforce numbered at round 85,000, of which simply 10 per cent of workers identified as having a multicultural background, reflecting the “want for stronger alignment with neighborhood range”, according to RLSSA.

There are also many non-aquatic professions where swimming skills are either mandatory or highly advantageous, including police, the Australian Defence Force, carers, teaching aides and tourism operators.

Meanwhile, Dr Kandra said better engaging Australia’s large migrant population with water was also beneficial for businesses, fighting weather events such as flash flooding, and representation in sport.

“There are a variety of financial alternatives out of it as properly … it is good enterprise for the water sports activities business, it is good enterprise for swim centres, for native swimming swimming pools,” he mentioned.

“Who is aware of, possibly in a number of years, I’d inspire my daughter to study swimming extra, and she or he may get a gold medal for us on the Olympics.”

Swimming remains Australia’s most successful sport at the Olympics, bringing in 58 of its total 135 medals in the history of the Games.

The nation’s second-most fashionable water-based sport after swimming is browsing, which has been discovered to inject nearly $3 billion into Australia’s financial system yearly.

How multicultural communities may be made extra snug round water

Advocates’ name for motion within the drowning prevention area ramps up each summer time — when deadly drownings are inclined to surge.

In April, the Albanese government committed $5 million over two years specifically to address the growing number of drownings among overseas-born Australians.

RLSSA’s Stacey Pidgeon says while more funding is always welcome, the money needs to be spent in a more focused way.

One approach, she says, is for universities to offer water safety modules and practical learn-to-swim programs for international students in their orientation semesters.

Ms Pidgeon also wants to see water safety messaging tailored to multicultural communities, who she stresses are “not homogeneous”, and delivered via avenues such as migration and settlement support agencies, local health services, and English language providers.

In Dr Kandra’s view, practical training needs to be prioritised over broad-brush awareness campaigns, and more role models are needed to help attract migrants — particularly those stigmatised — to swim programs through organic community outreach.

“If you continue to learn about water security in a closed classroom setting, that will not work,” he mentioned.

And according to Ms Scarce, aquatic facilities should be culturally sensitive when dealing with migrants learning how to swim, including by offering gender-specific classes, multilingual staff, or inclusive swimwear, and be mindful of individual needs.

Other ways to expand swimming access include offering classes out of hours and at subsidised rates.

In the new year, refugee boat survivor-turned lifeguard Razmi Hussaini hopes many more Australians overcome their anxieties with water and use it to transform their lives.

“I feel that, for me, even being across the water is a superb achievement,” he mentioned.