Written by:
Kondinin Group Researchers
Published on:
September 28, 2022
Drought assistance and sources of support
The Australian Government's drought response, resilience and preparedness plan consists of three focus areas:
- Immediate action for those in drought
- Farm Household Allowance
- Rural Financial Counsellors
- Wellbeing
- Drought Community Support Initiative
- Regional Investment Corporation
- Tax deductions
- Drought Map
- Climate and weather
- Pest & weed Management
- Water for fodder
- Water infrastructure
- Support for the wider communities affected by drought
- Drought communities programme extension
- Tackling Tough Times Together grants
- Building Better Regions Fund
- Roads to Recovery
- School Special Circumstances Funding
- Community Child Care Fund
- Drought Communities Small Business Support Program
- Long-term resilience and preparedness
- Future Drought Fund
- Australian Government plan
- CSIRO Drought Resilience Mission
For specific detail and information on all of these click on this link to explore more - Drought and rural support - DAFF
Government assistance
Useful links to government assistance:
- Rural Financial Counselling Network
- Drought and rural support - DAFF
- Drought support | National Recovery and Resilience Agency
- Drought support | Australian Taxation Office
- Drought Programs | Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts
- Farm Household Allowance - Services Australia
- Loans - Regional Investment Corporation
Assistance directories and tools
There are a number of web pages that bring together services, support and assistance from government, organisations and charities. These resources are updated regularly to include new services and update existing information about programs as required. They offer a useful starting point in finding available financial assistance. Many of these sites collate all types of funding making it easy to find out what is available.
- FarmHub - an Australian Government initiative administered by the National Farmers' Federation. It is a comprehensive directory of government and private sources of assistance available to farmers by state.
Explore - Farm Business Assistance | FarmHub
- Australian Government - Recovery Connect helping find assistance and support Recovery Connect
- Australian Government Business - grants and programs finder tool
Grants and programs finder | business.gov.au
- Grants Assists - lists any available government grants on offer for drought relief Government grants for Drought relief - Grants Assist
Charities and organisations offering assistance
A list of organisations that have been know to provide support during drought are:
- Salvation Army Drought Community Support Initiative | The Salvation Army Australia
- St Vincent de Paul - Drought Community Support Initiative (funding exhausted) Vinnies
- CWA Country Women's Association
- Rotary Rotary
- GIVIT GIVIT
- Lions - need for feed assistance Apply For Assistance
- Drought Angels Apply For Assistance - Drought Angels
- Aussie Helpers Drought Relief Support Activities Aussie Helpers
- Electricity providers relief payment - availability will vary from state to state depending drought status, suppliers and schemes. A useful tip is to search by state via the Farmhub link above to see what schemes are available.
- Business Energy Advice Program is available to drought affected businesses with less than 20 employees to get better energy deals and reduce energy costs by increasing energy efficiencies.
Business Energy Advice Program
Managing Future Droughts
After experiencing many droughts, the focus has now turned to how to use the experience gained to better prepare for the next one. The links below outline resources and initiatives in place to help individuals and communities better manage the risks associated with drought:
- Future Drought Fund - DAFF
- Farm Business Resilience Program - DAFF
- Regional Drought Resilience Planning - DAFF
- Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hubs - eight hubs exist to support farmers and communities to get ready for drought. The hubs are defined by climatic and agricultural zones across Australia:
- Northern Western Australian and Northern Territory Drought Hub
- Tropical North Queensland Drought Hub
- Southern Queensland Northern NSW Innovation Hub
- Southern NSW Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub
- Victoria Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub
- TASAg Innovation Hub
- SA Drought Hub
- South-West WA Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub
- Regional Investment Corporation Farm Investment Loan
- Foundation for Rural Regional Renewal - Networks to Build Drought Resilience Future Drought Fund's Networks to Build Drought Resilience | FRRR
Drought Research Reports
Managing weeds and pests during drought (06/24)
It is important to understand weed ecology during drought to establish an effective weed management plan.
Options for portable livestock handling equipment (06/24)
Several options available to producers to ensure that livestock are handled safely and efficiently.
Diversification To Add Resilience (05/24)
Branching out - tips for additional revenue streams on farm
Resilient Communities In Dry Times (05/24)
Resilience is seen as a buzzword of disaster responses. For some, “building resilience” is seen as an excuse for governments to opt out of providing support during dry times or following disruptions such as fire or flood.
Annual Reviews
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