Baird pledges Aboriginal education centre

The NSW coalition government has pledged to open an Aboriginal centre with mentors and education programs in western Sydney if re-elected on Saturday.

Up to $20 million will be poured into an Aboriginal Centre for Excellence to run from the University of Western Sydney's Penrith campus.

Premier Mike Baird says the centre will help guide Aboriginal students through school, tertiary education and into employment.

"That gives them every opportunity to achieve their dreams ... dreams they themselves think are beyond their grasp," he said on Monday.

The announcement revealed little detail on what programs will operate, but the premier pointed to the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence in Redfern as an example.

"We're opening this up to all services. The goals are quite simple, we want to inspire our Aboriginal youth ... getting the highest education qualifications they can and then seek to transition into employment," he said.