Northern Australia Agenda

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.

Map of Northern Australia - dark shading Our North, Our Future: White Paper on Developing Northern Australia (2015) definition; light shading Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility Act (2016) definition

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

Progress reports

Statements and agreements