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Overview
Background and Long-Term Strategy
The Global Challenges Program is a new Program with a five-year plan developed for implementation in 2009-10. The new Program is consistent with RIRDC's overriding aim of maximising the contribution its investments make to the profitability, sustainability and resilience of rural industries and communities. The Program has developed in response to RIRDC's specific legislative mandate to invest in national, cross-sectoral rural research and development, incorporating new initiatives as well as current programs of investment in Global Competitiveness, Emerging Rural Issues and Climate Change and Variability.
The agricultural sector currently faces key major challenges, including climate change, the global financial crisis and the international food crisis. The financial crisis is having wide-ranging impacts on the global economy, with flow on effects in relation to trade. At the same time, the global food crisis provides opportunities for Australian agriculture, with strong demand for agricultural produce forecast into the future.
Climate change and increasing variability poses a significant challenge to agriculture. There are a significant number of climate change policies and initiatives (e.g. emissions trading) that are currently being considered domestically and internationally. The need to investigate the implications of the policies and initiatives is growing in importance and urgency.
From a trade perspective, there is a growing trend to implement barriers to trade in key markets. An analysis of these is required to better inform industries, governments, trade negotiators and policy makers.
The influence of downstream elements of the food and fibre supply chain on the product and service standards demanded of farmers for issues such as quality assurance, food safety, environmental sustainability and production practices is increasing. Being competitive in the future will mean an increasing ability to meet those standards while remaining profitable.
Productivity is considered the most important factor that determines the competitiveness and viability of rural businesses in the long term. In 2009-10, RIRDC commissioned ABARE to develop a framework to analyse the pattern of innovation activities in the Australian broadacre cropping and livestock industries and examine its relationship with farm productivity and R&D investment.
Key long-term strategies
- International and domestic trade - to identify the impediments to a globally competitive Australian agricultural sector and support research into options and strategies to remove these impediments
- Improving agricultural productivity - to provide guidance on improving Australia's agricultural productivity performance through accurate measurement and understanding of the key drivers
- Food Security - to understand the factors impacting on global food security and to identify risks and opportunities relating to food security issues for Australian agriculture
- Climate Change - for Australian agriculture to better understand the impacts of climate change on Australian agriculture and to develop relevant mitigation and adaptation strategies
- Emerging Rural Issues - to develop a forward-looking capacity for RIRDC that proposes scenarios of the future agricultural sector and its trading environment based on current conditions and trends and potential changes.