But some worrying challenges remain.
The 48-year-old father of five and former Shepparton resident returned to the city this week in his role as Victoria’s Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People.
With him, he has brought members of the Victorian Government-appointed Koori Youth Justice Taskforce and the commission's related Our Youth, Our Way inquiry.
Both bodies are seeking answers to the over-representation of Aboriginal children and young people in the youth justice system.
The statistics are alarming — in 2016, 16 per cent of young people in the Victorian youth justice system identified as Aboriginal. Yet, Aboriginal people comprise only 1.6 per cent of the Victorian population aged 10–18 years.
On top of this, Mr Mohamed said Shepparton has one of the highest numbers of Aboriginal young people in the justice system in Victoria.
"Shepparton is an area of concern. It's in the bottom half of trends across the state. But we have the capacity to break the cycle here. We have a lot of commitment — but we have to do things differently," he said.
Mr Mohamed estimated that at any one time the Shepparton area has between 50 and 60 young people engaged in the youth justice system.
"Most of these kids have reoffended or they are in child protection or custody waiting to be released," he said.
Mr Mohamed, who was the inaugural director of Shepparton's Academy of Sport, Health and Education and also chief executive and chairperson of Rumbalara Aboriginal Co-operative, says many of the problems experienced by Shepparton's Aboriginal youth come from the inherited trauma of previous government policies, such as the removal of children from families.
"Some of these problems are systemic — institutional racism is still entwined in the system and we're not dealing with the causes," he said.
Mr Mohamed said many young Aboriginal offenders are already in child protection programs and have no way out when they enter the justice system.
"If it was your child, they would be bailed to your home. But they can't be bailed to a home because they have nowhere to go, so they find themselves in custody waiting for their court case," he said.
Mr Mohamed said providing good role models, placing young people and Aboriginal culture at the centre of the system, and strengthening links between government and local service providers is the aim of the task force and the commission's inquiry.
"If you don't look at their home life, their backgrounds and what they come back to — you're setting them up to fail," he said.
Mr Mohamed said this week, commission and task force members have been meeting with local representatives of government departments and service providers.
"If we get this right here in places like Shepparton, it could be an example of best practice right across Victoria and Australia," he said.
More about Shepparton's Aboriginal community
Dodson calls for voice at Rumba
Victorian Treaty Advancement continues with visit to Shepparton
National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day celebrated