Regional Development Australia

Regional Development Australia (RDA) is a partnership between the Australian, state and territory and local governments to support the growth and development of Australia’s regions. RDA committees will build partnerships between governments, regional development organisations, local businesses, community groups and key regional stakeholders to provide strategic and targeted responses to economic, environmental and social issues affecting the regions of Australia. The national RDA Charter [PDF: 48 KB] sets out the areas of focus for the RDA network.

RDA is delivered through a national network of 55 committees. All RDA committees have now been announced and many are open for business. The details of committees including their contact details can be found under the relevant state or territory heading.

The RDA committees will:

• consult and engage with the community on economic, social and environmental issues, solutions and priorities;
• liaise with governments and local communities about government programs, services, grants and initiatives for regional development;
• support informed regional planning; and
• contribute to business growth plans and investment strategies, environmental solutions and social inclusion strategies in their region.

Further information on the national roles and responsibilities of RDA committees is available at Roles and Responsibilities [PDF: 58 KB]. A key task for the committees is to develop regional plans which will be available to the community for review and discussion. RDA committees will then work with their communities to implement these plans.

Each committee comprises local leaders with broad and diverse skills and experience, as well as demonstrated networks within their region. Committee members are individuals who understand the challenges, opportunities and priorities within their local community.

Appointments to RDA committees have been made by the:

• Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government;
• in most jurisdictions, the state or territory government minister responsible for regional development; and
• in some jurisdictions the local government association.

These appointments have involved an open and public Expression of Interest process.

The Australian Government provides funding to support the establishment and operation of the committees. In some jurisdictions, state/territory and local governments are also providing funding and/or other forms of support to the committees.