Delivering more funding to strengthen drought and climate resilience

The Albanese Labor Government continues to support drought-impacted communities in regional and rural Australia, with $27 million in funding now available to scale up or extend drought and climate resilience projects.

Applications for the Future Drought Fund (FDF) Scaling Success Program are now open, with submissions invited from 160 participants already supported through FDF programs, including:

• The Drought Resilience Innovation Grants Program
• The Drought Resilient Soils and Landscapes Program
• The National Resource Management Drought Resilience Program
• The Extension and Adoption of Drought Resilience Farming Practices Grants Program.

The grants will expand previous or current projects that support farmers, producers, and people in regional and remote communities to boost their drought resilience.

These projects may range from the adoption of evidence-based cropping or grazing practices, drone or robot technologies, through to the implementation of more efficient water use in farm dams.

These practices, technologies or approaches from previous projects will strengthen drought and climate resilience.

This funding responds to feedback from the farming industry on the need for fewer, longer and more impactful programs that support drought and climate resilience and is part of the Albanese Labor Government’s $519.1 million investment in the Future Drought Fund.

More broadly, the Government has committed over $2 billion to ensure farmers across the country can confidently face our climate future.

Applications for the Scaling Success Program close on 04 December 2025.

For more information, visit: www.agriculture.gov.au/agriculture-land/farm-food-drought/drought/futur…

Quotes attributable to Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Julie Collins MP:

“The Scaling for Success program responds to feedback from the farming industry about the need for simplified programs that support them to be better prepared before, during and after challenging periods.

“It means we can scale up and strengthen existing projects that are already supporting our farmers, producers and regional communities to improve their drought and climate resilience.

“We heard loud and clear from the farming industry at our recent National Drought Forum about the importance of building long-term resilience to drought, which is exactly what the Future Drought Fund supports.

“We know our rural and regional communities impacted by drought are doing it tough, which is why we continue to work with them to deliver support.”