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Department of Agriculture

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  1. Home
  2. Agriculture and land
  3. Farming, food and drought
  4. Drought and rural support
  5. Future Drought Fund

Sidebar first - Farming

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Future Drought Fund

Drought is an enduring feature of the Australian landscape. It has significant economic, social and environmental impacts.

The $5 billion Future Drought Fund provides secure, continuous funding for drought resilience initiatives. It will help Australian farms and communities prepare for the impacts of drought.

In the 2022-23 Budget, the Australian Government has allocated a further $94.5 million over 2022-23 to 2027-28 to continue delivery of the Drought Resilience Funding Plan 2020-2024.

Fund programs

The Future Drought Fund launched its first programs on the 1st of July 2020 to build resilience to future droughts.

  • FDF key achievements (PDF 451 KB)
  • FDF key achievements (DOCX 254 KB)
  • FDF case studies

Programs are being delivered in accordance with the principles outlined in the Drought Resilience Funding Plan 2020-2024.

Annual Report

Read the first Future Drought Fund Annual Report.

  • Future Drought Fund: Annual Report 2020-21 (PDF 4.2 MB)
  • Future Drought Fund: Annual Report 2020-21 (DOCX 6.5 MB)

Our focus

Harnessing innovation

Driving adoption of new drought resilient technologies and practices. $121.06 million to 2023-24.

Programs

  • Adoption and Innovation Hubs
  • Innovation Grants
  • National enabling activities

 

Better risk management

Helping farmers and regions  plan for drought. $116.82 million to 2023-24.

Programs

  • Farm Business Resilience
  • Regional Drought Resilience Planning

 

Better climate information

Making climate information accessible and useful. $39 million to 2023-24.

Programs

  • Climate Services for Agriculture
  • Drought Resilience Self-Assessment Tool

 

More resilient communities

Building social capital to drive change and support resilient communities. $19.2 million to 2023-24.

Programs

  • Drought Resilience Leaders
  • Networks to Build Drought Resilience

 

Better land management

Trial and adoption of land management practices that support landscape resilience - $36.42 million to 2023-24.

Programs

  • Drought Resilient Soils and Landscapes
  • NRM Drought Resilience Program – Landscapes
  • NRM Drought Resilience program – Grants

 

The Fund began with an initial credit of $3.9 billion. Earnings are reinvested until the balance reaches $5 billion (expected in 2028-29). See the details about Future Fund investments.

From July 2020, $100 million will be made available each year from the Fund to support Australian farmers and communities to prepare for and become more resilient to the effects of future drought. This will:

  • make agriculture more productive and profitable
  • enhance the wellbeing of our farming communities
  • improve the sustainability and resilience of the natural resources on which agriculture depends.

The Drought Resilience Funding Plan is a high-level framework to guide funding decisions for the programs.

The Funding Plan aligns with existing drought policies and strategies, including the National Drought Agreement.

We consulted on the draft Drought Resilience Funding Plan from 29 October to 13 December 2019. We held 73 face-to-face discussions in 23 locations around Australia. Participants also completed an online survey and uploaded written submissions.

See the results of our consultation.

The independent Future Drought Fund Consultative Committee comprises experts in fields that include agricultural economics, climate risk, rural and regional development and natural resource management.

The Committee provided expert advice to the Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia on the Drought Resilience Funding Plan 2020 to 2024.

The Committee also provided expert advice to the Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia on the consistency of the design of the programs with the Funding Plan.

The Regional Investment Corporation Board provides advice to the Minister of Agriculture and Northern Australia, on whether or not a proposed arrangement, grant or agreement is consistent with the Funding Plan.

The Funding Plan will be reviewed every four years. This will ensure it captures emerging priorities and remains future-focused. The Productivity Commission will assess the effectiveness of each Funding Plan before it expires, in a report that will be tabled in Parliament.

The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Framework will support the measurement and achievements of Future Drought Fund programs over time.

Stay informed

  • Subscribe for updates on Future Drought Fund developments through our ‘Have Your Say’ page—choose the ‘Stay informed’ button to receive regular email updates from us
  • Read the latest department media releases
  • Read the latest media releases from the Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia

Contact us

We’d love to hear from you, email droughtresilience@agriculture.gov.au.

Download the factsheet

Document File size
Future Drought Fund: Long-Term Trials of Drought Resilience Farming Practices DOCX 849 KB
Future Drought Fund: Drought Resilience Commercialisation Initiative DOCX 847 KB
Future Drought Fund: Grants to Activate Drought Resilience Practices DOCX 849 KB
Future Drought Fund: Drought Resilience Scholarships DOCX 848 KB
Future Drought Fund: Improving resilience with better climate information nationally DOCX 848 KB
Future Drought Fund: Helping regional communities prepare for future droughts DOCX 847 KB

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

Read more

The Drought Resilience Funding Plan was tabled in Parliament on 12 February 2020 as a disallowable instrument.

Read the Drought Resilience Funding Plan.

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Last updated: 05 May 2022

© Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.