BOOST FOR AUSTRALIA’S REMOTE ECONOMY
Senator the Hon Kim Carr, the Minister for Innovation, Industry,
Science and Research has today announced a major investment in
remote Australian research and innovation. Vibrant regional
economies, more jobs for Australians in remote areas, better
education and more enterprises for Aboriginal people are the goals
of a new national research organisation. The Cooperative Research
Centre for Remote Economic Participation (CRC-REP) will be a public
good research centre with a major focus on delivering solutions to
economic disadvantage in remote Australia.
In particular, CRC-REP will directly address the Australian
Government’s national priorities under its 'Closing The Gap'
policy, which aims to halve the unemployment, welfare and other
differentials between Aboriginal people in remote areas and the
rest of Australia.
“CRC-REP will follow from the successes of the Desert
Knowledge CRC and is the most comprehensive approach to the issue
of economic isolation yet developed,” the Managing Director
of the Desert Knowledge CRC, Jan Ferguson said. “The new
centre has three main goals:
- To develop new ways to strengthen regional economies across
remote Australia
- To build new enterprises to provide jobs and livelihoods in
remote areas
- To improve the education and training pathways for people
living in remote areas.
In one of the nation’s largest single research partnerships,
CRC-REP has more than sixty partners from Aboriginal organisations,
non-government bodies, research agencies, universities, Australian
and State governments and the private sector – including
mining and pastoralism.
“The remote regions of Australia generate far more export
income per head and have more businesses per head than the rest of
Australia. We want these positive outcomes for the economy as a way
to support the remote community’s economic activity,”
Ms Ferguson says.
“Australia relies on its remote regions for wealth and
employment in our cities – but the remote regions often
confront issues when it comes to access to markets, opportunities
and access to services like education, health, housing and social
welfare.
“The sheer breadth of support for this CRC from Federal
and State government agencies as well as large, medium and small
enterprises, Aboriginal communities, NGOs and some of the
country’s top research bodies tells you how important and
urgent this issue is now seen to be.
“There has never been a consensus quite like this, nor
such an opportunity to harmonise the national effort to build the
remote economy across an area that embraces three quarters of our
continent.
“Such a huge alliance can really only be achieved through
the cooperative research centre model, which enables all this
widely differing entities to work closely together for the same
ends.”
The CRC-REP will be a 'public good' research organisation
delivering better business models and tools to remote populations.
Over 15 years it aims to help achieve:
- 2,295 more direct jobs for Aboriginal people, especially in the
art world
- savings in welfare payments of $160 million
- Increased profitability in remote pastoral industry of $292
million
- Improved educational and health standards of residents in
remote regions
- Increased health and wellbeing in remote communities due to
regular livelihoods.
“A very high priority will be working with Aboriginal
communities to build new enterprises based around their cultural
and natural resources – enterprises that will generate real
and sustainable livelihoods for people living in remote
settlements.
Based on successful models developed by Aboriginal people and
communities, CRC-REP will assist in the development of new
enterprises based around bush foods and medicines, culture, land
management, art and tourism.
It will work with the mining industry and local government to
ensure enduring benefits to surrounding regions and communities
during mining operations and after they cease.
It will continue to develop 'precision pastoralism' technologies
and systems as a sustainable industry for inland Australia
pioneered by the Desert Knowledge CRC.
It will help develop sustainable energy solutions for remote
areas and the nation as a whole, based on renewable resources and
other opportunities, and assist remote populations to adapt to
climate change.
“Especially, we will explore innovative ways to deliver
education in remote areas, adapting it better to local needs,
making better use of technology and finding ways to attract and
retain quality teachers in remote communities,” Ms Ferguson
said.
“Remote Australia may only account for 5 per cent of the
population, but it covers more than three quarters of the continent
and it deserves a sound scientific base and innovation.
“The CRC-REP is designed to build the economic strength,
independence, skills and opportunities remote Australia requires to
make its fullest contribution to the sustainability and economic
prosperity of the nation.”
More information:
Jan Ferguson, Managing Director, Desert Knowledge CRC, 08 8959 6041
or 0401 719 882
Paul Wand, Chair-elect CRC for Remote Economic Participation, 0419
011 440
Craig James, General Manager Commercialisation and Communication,
DKCRC, 0408 838 194
Prof. Julian Cribb, DKCRC media, 0418 639 245
More details of the CRC-REP at http://www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/rebidround12/index.html
