Future Drought Fund Programs
These programs are jointly funded through the Australian Government's Future Drought Fund (FDF) and the Government of South Australia.
The $5 billion FDF is part of the Australian Government's Drought Response, Resilience and Preparedness Plan. It provides secure funding to help farmers and communities prepare for the impacts of drought and climate change. $100 million will be invested from the fund across Australia every year for projects that strengthen drought resilience.
On 8 April 2025, the Premier of South Australia, Treasurer, and the Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development announced further drought support. This includes a further investment of $17.4 million for the Future Drought Fund Preparedness and Resilience Programs, with funding for the Regional Drought Resilience Planning and Farm Business Resilience Programs until December 2029.
PIRSA is coordinating the delivery of the following programs.
Regional Drought Resilience Planning Program
The Regional Drought Resilience Planning Program supports regionally based partnerships to develop drought resilience plans. These plans identify and guide innovative ways to withstand future droughts, with a focus on agriculture and allied industries.
Regional plans were developed through a co-design process and will be led and owned by the community. The partnerships are made up of regional organisations, local government, communities, and industry groups.
Since the RDRP Program commenced in 2021, regional partnerships in the following regions have developed drought resilience plans:
- Murraylands and Riverland ()
- Northern and Yorke ()
- Far North and Outback ()
- Limestone Coast ()
- Eyre Peninsula ()
- Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island ().
In the next phase of the program, regions will have an opportunity to apply for implementation funding for eligible activities identified in their plans.
Farm Business Resilience Program
The Farm Business Resilience Program prepares Australian farmers, farm managers, and farm employees to better manage risks relating to drought and its impacts. This helps with improving their economic, environmental, and social resilience.
The program is run in partnership with industry bodies including Livestock SA, Grain Producers SA, the Wine Grape Council of South Australia, AUSVEG SA, and SA Dairyfarmers. It allows the livestock, wine grape, grains, dairy, and vegetable sectors to access industry-led training in:
- strategic business skills
- risk management
- natural resource management
- personal and social resilience (e.g. succession planning).
The program also supports farmers to develop or update their existing farm business plans and connects them with Family and Business (FaB) Mentors for one-on-one professional advice on their plan.
To find out more about current and past FBR projects in South Australia, contact:
- Livestock SA – broadacre sector: AgRi-Silience Program
- Wine Grape Council of SA – wine grape sector: GrowStrong 2025
- AUSVEG SA – vegetable sector
- Grain Producers SA – grains sector greenhouse gas emissions baseline project: GPSA + Pinion Advisory Emissions Baselining EOI
- SA Dairyfarmers' Association – dairy sector
- PIRSA Apiary sector: PIRSA.Drought@sa.gov.au
Resources
Resources
The following tools help apiary businesses to self-assess their business fitness and find opportunities to build farm business resilience, make business decisions, and prioritise business goals:
