Step Up In Drought Budget Support
The government will be delivering $11 million as an investment in leadership, mentoring, capacity building and small community infrastructure to help build drought resilience under the Future Drought Fund.
These activities will begin in early 2021 and will include leadership training and extending these learnings into the community, ‘farmer to farmer’ mentoring, community network events and renewing community facilities to be resilient to impacts of drought. These activities will be delivered by the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation and the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal and interested groups and individuals can apply directly with program providers.
Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management, David Little- proud said of the program, “The $5 billion Future Drought Fund provides secure, continuous funding for resilience initiatives that will give farmers and communities the tools they need to prepare for, manage and sustain their livelihoods during droughts. The networks program will build community capacity and boost the presence and reach of rural and regional community networks and build small-scale infrastructure projects. This will boost community connectedness and collaboration which builds drought resilience. The leaders program provides an invaluable opportunity for young people and emerging leaders to receive practical training and enable farmers to share skills and information with their peers through mentoring. The Australian Rural Leadership Foundation Limited will deliver the $7.45 million Drought Resilience Leaders program. The Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal will deliver the $3.75 million Networks to Build Drought Resilience program. Both providers have an extensive national reach and capability to tailor support to different regional contexts, ensuring the programs deliver maximum benefits for our agriculture-dependent communities facing future droughts.”
For more information go to: www.agriculture.gov.au/ag-farm-food/drought/future-drought-fund.