Drought is an enduring feature of the Australian landscape. It has significant economic, social and environmental impacts.
The FDF provides secure, continuous funding for drought resilience initiatives. It will help Australian farms and communities prepare for the impacts of drought.
Productivity Commission Review
A Productivity Commission review of the Future Drought Fund (FDF) commenced on 10 January 2023. The purpose of the review was to consider progress made towards building drought resilience since the Fund’s establishment in 2019 and how farmers and their communities can be better supported to prepare for drought.
The Commission has released its Inquiry Report into the effectiveness of the FDF.
The report will help inform the future direction of FDF investments and activities from 2024.
Stakeholders will be invited to provide feedback to guide future FDF investments from mid-October to late November 2023.
Learn about the Productivity Commission’s Inquiry findings and upcoming opportunities to Have Your Say.Annual Report
Read the latest FDF Annual Report.
- Future Drought Fund: Annual Report 2021-22 (PDF 5.7 MB)
- Future Drought Fund: Annual Report 2021-22 (DOCX 43.9 MB)
See the Future Drought Fund’s 2021-2022 key achievements.
Read the first FDF Annual Report.
- Future Drought Fund: Annual Report 2020-21 (PDF 4.2 MB)
- Future Drought Fund: Annual Report 2020-21 (DOCX 6.5 MB)
If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.
Our focus
Better climate information
Enabling farmers, businesses and communities to better understand the climate risks they face and their resilience to those risks. $39 million to 2023-24.
Programs
Better planning
Helping farmers and regions to plan for drought. $116.82 million to 2023-24.
Programs
Better practices
Developing and driving adoption of farming and land management practices and technologies that improve resilience to droughts. $171.78 million to 2023-24.
Programs
- Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hubs
- Innovation Grants
- National enabling activities
- Drought Resilient Soils and Landscapes
- NRM Drought Resilience Program - Landscapes
- NRM Drought Resilience Program - Grants
- Extension and Adoption of Drought Resilience Farming Practices Grants
- Long-term Trials of Drought Resilient Farming Practices Grants
- Drought Resilience Commercialisation Initiative
- Drought Resilience Scholarship Program
Better prepared communities
Building and supporting the leaders, networks and organisations that underpin community resilience. $40.8 million to 2023-24.
Programs
The Fund began with an initial credit of $3.9 billion. Earnings are reinvested until the balance reaches $5 billion (expected in 2028-29). See the details about Future Fund investments.
From July 2020, $100 million will be made available each year from the Fund to support Australian farmers and communities to prepare for and become more resilient to the effects of future drought. This will:
- make agriculture more productive and profitable
- enhance the wellbeing of our farming communities
- improve the sustainability and resilience of the natural resources on which agriculture depends.
The Drought Resilience Funding Plan is a high-level framework to guide funding decisions for the programs.
The Funding Plan aligns with existing drought policies and strategies, including the National Drought Agreement.
We consulted on the draft Drought Resilience Funding Plan from 29 October to 13 December 2019. We held 73 face-to-face discussions in 23 locations around Australia. Participants also completed an online survey and uploaded written submissions.
The independent Future Drought Fund Committee comprises experts in sustainability, drought resilience, economics, climate change, innovation and rural and regional development.
The Committee will provide expert advice to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry on the Drought Resilience Funding Plan 2024 to 2028 and on the consistency of the design of the programs with the Funding Plan.
The Regional Investment Corporation Board provides advice to the Minister of Agriculture and Northern Australia, on whether or not a proposed arrangement, grant or agreement is consistent with the Funding Plan.
Funding Plans will be reviewed every four years. This will ensure emerging priorities are captured. Stakeholder consultation will take place over a 6-week period to inform the finalisation of each new Funding Plan. The Productivity Commission will assess the effectiveness of each Funding Plan before it expires, in a report that will be tabled in Parliament.
The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Framework will support the measurement and achievements of Future Drought Fund programs over time.
Stay informed
- Subscribe for updates on Future Drought Fund developments through our ‘Have Your Say’ page—choose the ‘Stay informed’ button to receive regular email updates from us
- Read the latest department media releases
- Read the latest media releases from the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Contact us
We’d love to hear from you, email droughtresilience@aff.gov.au.
Read more
The Drought Resilience Funding Plan was tabled in Parliament on 12 February 2020 as a disallowable instrument.
Read the Drought Resilience Funding Plan.