Developing the new Northern Australia Action Plan—Refresh of the White Paper on Developing Northern Australia
We are engaging with stakeholders to inform a refresh of the 2015 Our North, Our Future: White Paper on Developing Northern Australia. The outcome of this work will be to develop a new action plan for Northern Australia.
This work is part of the Australian Government's commitment to addressing the unique and complex challenges that hinder Northern Australia's development potential.
The Northern Australia Action Plan will cover 3 priority areas which were agreed to by the Northern Australia Ministerial Forum. The cross-cutting priorities for these areas include engagement with First Nations people and transformational and complex projects:
Human capital
- Justice reinvestment
- Housing availability
- Migration and mobility
- Workforce skills and training development
- Delivering amenity
Enabling infrastructure
- Digital connectivity
- Enabling roads, rail and ports
- Common user infrastructure
- Water
Economic development and diversification
- Diversification that responds to climate change (adaptation and mitigation)
- Agriculture and biosecurity
- Data to support decision making and investment
We're seeking your input to better understand priorities for the north and to inform the development of the Northern Australia Action Plan through face to face and virtual meetings with identified stakeholders as well as a survey open to everyone. We invite you to have your say on the future of Northern Australia by responding to our online survey below. The survey should take approximately 15 minutes.
To complete the survey click here
Relevant documentation:
A third party is collecting personal information, on behalf of the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts (the department), for the purposes of conducting a survey, in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988.
The third party and the Department will not disclose information to any other parties unless required by law and all information and data will be stored securely.
The results of the survey, in part or in full, may be published on the Department's website. The results will be aggregated, and it will not be possible to identify your individual information.
The department's privacy policy contains information regarding complaint handling processes, how to access and/or seek correction of personal information held by the department and contact details for the Privacy Officer.
Our North, Our Future: White Paper on Developing Northern Australia
The Our North, Our Future: White Paper on Developing Northern Australia (White Paper) is the Government's 20-year framework to guide policy makers and investors in building a strong, prosperous, resilient northern economy.
The White Paper is a 20-year plan for investment and collaborative support to unlock the strategic potential of the north. It is focused on developing industries and facilitating long-term economic growth. The White Paper is positioning Northern Australia as an attractive environment for businesses to invest and communities to flourish.
The White Paper was informed by the Green Paper on Developing Northern Australia, which sought to facilitate feedback on opportunities, risks, challenges and policy options to drive growth in the north.
- Our North, Our Future: White Paper on Developing Northern Australia DOCX: 12948 KB
- Our North, Our Future: White Paper on Developing Northern Australia PDF: 15251 KB
- Our North, Our Future: White Paper Overview PDF: 2024 KB
- Green Paper on Developing Northern Australia DOCX: 1218 KB
- Green Paper on Developing Northern Australia PDF: 2723 KB
The Australian Government defines Northern Australia as all of the Northern Territory and those parts of Queensland and Western Australia that intersect with the Tropic of Capricorn, as well as the Indian Ocean Territories of Christmas, Cocos and Keeling Islands.
Developing Northern Australia and realising its economic opportunities requires the collective efforts of all levels of government, the private sector, and communities. Working together will secure the north's strong and sustainable future.
Fact sheets
- Fact sheet: Budget 2023–24 Investments in Northern Australia PDF: 635 KB
- Fact sheet: Budget 2022–23 Investments in Northern Australia PDF: 509 KB
Progress reports
- Our North, Our Future 2021–2026: Targeted Growth PDF: 7739 KB
- Our North, Our Future Implementation Report 2018 DOCX: 5791 KB
- Our North, Our Future Implementation Report 2018 PDF: 14938 KB
- Our North, Our Future Implementation Report 2017 DOCX: 2508 KB
- Our North, Our Future Implementation Report 2017 PDF: 9609 KB
Statements and agreements
- Minister for Northern Australia—2023 Annual Statement to Parliament
- Minister for Northern Australia—2022 Annual Statement to Parliament PDF: 277 KB
- Minister for Northern Australia—2021 Annual Statement to Parliament PDF: 207 KB
- Minister for Northern Australia—2020 Annual Statement to Parliament PDF: 168 KB
- Minister for Northern Australia—2019 Annual Statement to Parliament PDF: 134 KB
- Minister for Northern Australia—2018 Annual Statement to Parliament PDF: 246 KB
- Minister for Northern Australia—2017 Annual Statement to Parliament PDF: 129 KB
- Minister for Northern Australia—2016 Annual Statement to Parliament PDF: 124 KB
- Development Statement for Northern Australia—2018 PDF: 774 KB
- Defence Statement for Northern Australia—2018 PDF: 648 KB
- Northern Australia Indigenous Development Accord
- Office of Northern Australia Information Exchange PDF: 616 KB