Farmers, community members and industry organisations are invited to attend a public consultation on how to best invest in drought resilience later this month.
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The Future Drought Fund Consultative Committee will be hold two face-to-face meetings in Moree on Wednesday, November 27 to discuss projects and activities that will enhance the drought resilience of Australian farmers and communities, as part of the federal government's Future Drought Fund.
The Future Drought Fund will provide $100 million each year, beginning in July 2020, to support projects that will be designed to make agriculture more productive and profitable and enhance the wellbeing of our farming communities and sustainability of our farming sector.
Moree mayor Katrina Humphries encourages all community members to attend the consultation to ensure their input is received and forms part of the committee's funding initiatives.
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"Drought is a common part of the harsh Australian landscape and an issue Moree Plains Shire is no stranger to; it is a challenge we are facing now and will face again in the future," she said.
"I am really pleased to see the federal government's commitment to the Future Drought Fund. It is vitally important for our community members to participate in shaping the future policy of the government, so I encourage everyone to come along.
"The Future Drought Fund is an opportunity to provide input and ensure funding is spent to its maximum benefit."
The committee will consult with stakeholders across Australia, with the committee itself having expertise in agriculture economics, climate risk, rural and regional development and natural resource management.
It will then review all feedback and provide advice on a draft plan to the Minister of Water Resources, Drought, Rural Finance, Natural Disaster and Emergency Management; the aim being for this plan to be a high level framework to guide funding decisions and activities.
The plan will be reviewed every four years to ensure it includes relevant priorities that are future-focussed and will be assessed by the Productivity Commission prior to its expiry assessing the plan's economic, social and environmental outcomes.
Council's acting general manager Mitchell Johnson said council welcomes the invitation to participate in formulating the plan.
"Our community members live and breathe the consequences of this insidious drought and are best placed to ensure that proactive approaches to drought resilience make their way into government policy," he said.
The meetings will be held at Moree Services Club from 9am to 10.30am and again from 1.30pm to 3pm on Wednesday, November 27. Register at: https://haveyoursay.agriculture.gov.au/future-drought-fund?tool=news_feed#tool_tab
Those unable to attend the meetings in person can provide feedback by downloading and reading the draft Drought Resilience Funding Plan and using the online form to complete an online survey, upload a written response, or do both.
