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Outcome 2 : Greater recognition and development opportunities for local, regional and territory communities

Outcome 2 seeks to achieve greater recognition and development opportunities for local, regional and territory communities. We strive to do this by working towards three strategic objectives:

Regional communities which have better access to economic opportunities and services, and which are able to take the lead in their own planning and development

Territories which provide for their residents the same opportunities and responsibilities as other Australians enjoy in comparable communities

Local governments which serve their communities more efficiently and effectively.

During 2002-03, we focused our work on the government's three priority areas for Outcome 2:

• improvements in regional programme design and delivery and development of a framework of core indicators for the health of the regions and evaluation of regional programmes
• natural resource management
• supporting the government's unauthorised boat arrivals policy in the external territories, and facilitating the construction of a new detention centre on Christmas Island.

To support the ministers, the department provided briefings on a wide range of issues arising in other portfolios where regional aspects were involved. This requires a spread of understanding and networking across portfolios, and the flexibility to apply attention to new areas at short notice.

Major achievements for the year included:

• the new Regional Partnerships programme, combining nine existing regional programmes into one
• building on the Stronger Regions, A Stronger Australia initiative
• support for the Regional Business Development Analysis Panel and the Standing Committee on Regional Development
• progress on the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) indigenous trial in Tjurabalan, East Kimberley, Western Australia
• the establishment of the Deputy Secretaries Whole of Government Group
• construction of the Immigration Reception and Processing Centre on Christmas Island
• contribution to the parliamentary inquiry into local government finance.

Figure 3 (p. 80) shows the cascaded linkages contributing to Outcome 2, including strategic objectives and priority areas. It illustrates how the six regional outputs (services delivered), 10 key strategies and 20 administered programmes work together to help meet the strategic objectives as the pathway for achieving Outcome 2.

Figure 3: Outcome 2 - Performance reporting structure