The peak body representing First Nations businesses in the Northern Territory has criticised the federal government for dragging its feet on reviewing its Indigenous Procurement Policy.

The government is overhauling the Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP), including a proposal to require Indigenous enterprises to be majority Indigenous-owned, managed, and controlled.

The Commonwealth is also looking at ways to stamp out Black-cladding, which occurs when non-Indigenous companies inflate their Indigenous shareholder base or claim to be First Nations businesses in a bid to win government contracts.

Public consultation on the IPP closed on March 24, last year.

Northern Territory Indigenous Business Network (NTIBN) "big boss" Naomi Anstess said it was frustrating the feds hadn't released their findings.

"We were firm in our opinion for change in the review which occurred early last year, but we've still heard nothing about it," she said.

"Linda Burney (former Minister for Indigenous Australians) declared that she would move the definition of an Aboriginal business to a majority ownership mode but that hasn't occurred.

"Linda Burney said six months before the actual review that she would change it to a '51 to 49' model and then she made some public announcements, but we are still here today over a year later and nothing."

Ms Anstess said the organisation had also written to current Minister for Indigenous Australians Malarndirri McCarthy and her agency colleagues at NIAA and asked her to meet with the NTIBN.

"All we got back is we'll talk about that when the review is complete. At some point, the review needs to be completed before the next election," she said.

"We've said that there needs to be a strong maturing of the policy even though it has been a very good tool to get people to consider Aboriginal businesses."

Under the current IPP, three per cent of all contracts and 1.75 per cent of the value of all contracts must be awarded to businesses at least 50 per cent owned by Indigenous people.

Since the IPP was introduced almost 10 years ago, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-owned companies have secured $10 billion in Commonwealth contracts.

The First Nations business sector now contributes more than $16 billion to the Australian economy and employed more than 116,000 people, paying them upwards of $4 billion.

While the IPP has helped boost the Indigenous economy, Ms Anstess said the current policy opens the door to a significant amount of Black-cladding.

"I think in the first place the really important piece is proper certification of Aboriginal-owned businesses," she said.

"A proper certification order process that's led by Aboriginal people and owned by our people and ensures a real Certificate of Aboriginality with a common seal. That is not the case through Supply Nation – they currently allow statutory declarations as evidence as well as 50/50 enterprises," she said.

"We have never acknowledged 50/50 enterprises. We've always been a definition of majority ownership, so 51 per cent as a minimum of management and control."

A spokesperson for Senator McCarthy Indigenous Business Review the Albanese government was committed to increasing opportunities for First Nations businesses and recently held consultations on how to strengthen the Indigenous Procurement Policy.

"The Albanese government is working to ensure the Indigenous Procurement Policy continues to create economic and employment opportunities for First Nations businesses and the people and communities they support," they said.

Indigenous Business Review understands Senator McCarthy's office has reached out to NTIBN for a meeting since this publication made enquiries.