Ensure Northern Australia and Developing Regions fulfil their economic role, attract and retain skilled workers and enable participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through greater collaboration between governments on infrastructure needs across the region.
- Social benefits
Key messages
Targeted reform and investment to develop Northern Australia can boost national economic growth, industry productivity and energy security and reinforce national security.
Infrastructure investment in Northern Australia presents specific challenges, including extreme climate, diverse environments and economies and low population density.
There needs to be better data to inform decision-making, including on population, the environment, natural resources and infrastructure requirements.Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities’ participation is central to northern economic development, and infrastructure investment is needed to enable economic participation and
wellbeing.
Enhancing connectivity and liveability is necessary for Northern Australia to be able to attract and retain skilled workers and their families, and to provide adequate services to remote communities.
What are the impacts?
Improving transport, energy and telecommunications infrastructure will enhance the economic potential of Northern Australia, a key exporter.
Governance efficiencies will be achieved through better planning and decision-making within each level of government, to improve livability and workforce development.
Improving telecommunications and transport connectivity enhances job accessibility, supporting social and economic advancement for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Improving the quality of telecommunications infrastructure will improve community resilience and provide more accessible delivery of health services, particularly during natural disasters.
Building infrastructure and unlocking opportunities such as natural resources will have some environmental impact, including emissions, in the near term.
How easy is it to implement?
The high relative cost of delivering infrastructure in Northern Australia is a key challenge when the service uptake rate is unknown.
With the exception of large-scale resources projects, Northern Australia has limited capacity in the private sector to deliver infrastructure projects. Government will need to develop policies to attract and retain skilled workers to enhance local business capacity.
The reform will be reasonably complex to implement as it requires long-term commitment and cooperation between governments, agencies and the private sector.
How certain are the outcomes?
Involving local communities in investment, employment creation and business opportunities will increase community acceptance of the reform.
While there is insufficient data in general on resource development and endowments in Northern Australia, the reform should improve knowledge and capacity to deliver industry confidence.
However, the Aboriginal Land Rights Act and Native Title Act provide for informed consent of traditional owners and can extend infrastructure delivery timelines. Governments have limited control to intervene, potentially increasing the risks for new infrastructure investment.
| Governance |
Northern Australia Infrastructure Audit
|
| Economic |
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment
|
| Social |
Northern Australia population growth
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Read more about this recommendation in 1.4 Unlocking opportunity in Northern Australia and Developing Regions in the 2021 Australian Infrastructure Plan.
Reform implementation pathway
This recommendation comprises of outcomes and activities, which form the reform's implementation pathway.
The implementation pathway is designed to guide change agents on the supporting activities necessary to achieve the overall reform.
For each outcome and activity, we propose change agents to act as:
- Proposed sponsor: facilitate, coordinate and champion the recommendation
- Proposed lead: deliver specific activities or lead related outcomes
- Support: share ownership, contributions or knowledge to enable the reform process.
Improve investor certainty by collecting and publishing better data on the region’s characteristics and infrastructure.
0-5 years
Support informed decision-making, identify gaps and determine priorities for data collection and research through the creation of a cross-jurisdictional agency collaboration group to lead an audit of data availability and adequacy.
0-5 years
Reduce investor uncertainty and improve decision-making by identifying, creating and publishing place and network-centric data, including assessing natural resource endowments.
0-5 years
Better meet the current and future needs of users by undertaking a new Northern Australia Infrastructure Audit.
0-5 years
Support industry development by developing place and network-based infrastructure strategies linked to incumbent and emerging growth industries.
0-5 years
Identify potential growth industries and growth patterns in key industries through a renewal of the Northern Australia Agenda.
0-5 years
Meet the requirements of growth industries by undertaking place-based assessment of digital adequacy, accessibility and affordability.
0-5 years
Identify opportunities for shared infrastructure and reduced costs by undertaking joint assessment of enabling infrastructure requirements for major industry developments.
0-5 years
Reduce business costs by improving supply chain efficiency and reliability through the inclusion of end-to-end key supply chain strategies that connect productive regions with domestic markets and export gateways in the National Freight Strategy.
0-5 years
Support the infrastructure pipeline delivery for Northern Australia and grow key industries such as major resources, energy and agribusiness by developing a skills formation and attraction plan assessing skills requirements, skills training capability and liveability factors.
0-5 years
Attract and retain a skilled workforce by supporting liveability through investment in social infrastructure and connectivity.
5-10 years
Facilitate local workforce participation by identifying opportunities for developing innovation or specialisation precincts alongside major infrastructure.
5-10 years
Support participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander enterprises and individuals in infrastructure planning and delivery by developing joint programs for agencies leading the planning, delivery and operation of infrastructure.
5-10 years
Ensure infrastructure delivers improved social and economic outcomes for communities by aligning major infrastructure investment with the objectives of the Northern Australia Indigenous Development Accord and Closing the Gap targets.
0-5 years
Support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participation in the Northern Australia economy, including infrastructure delivery, by assessing and prioritising investment in enabling digital and transport connectivity in partnership with local First Nations communities.
0-5 years
Build the capability of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander entrepreneurs and traditional owners to participate in the economic development process through financial and technical support to map the commercial potential of their land and water assets and develop feasibility studies and commercial partnerships with project proponents.
0-5 years
Improve the consistency and effectiveness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander procurement policies by standardising monitoring and performance reporting across jurisdictions.
0-5 years
Sustain local community employment in infrastructure delivery and other projects by developing an essential skills training academy building infrastructure delivery skills and knowledge.
10-15 years