National Research Priority Implementation Plans

The National Research Priorities (NRPs) provide a vision of how research can: contribute to Australia’s future prosperity and well being, enhance the quality and impact of our research by building critical mass in priority areas, and promote collaboration between research organisations and with industry.

The way the NRPs are implemented is vitally important.  All Australian Government research agencies and funding bodies are expected to implement the priorities to the extent that is consistent with their mission or mandate.

In January 2003, research agencies and funding bodies were requested to develop NRP implementation plans in accordance with guidelines and to forward them to the Government by May 2003.  The plans were expected to address a range of issues, such as strategies to build critical mass and for enhancing collaboration. 

The Government referred the implementation plans to an expert committee chaired by the Chief Scientist to advise it on their adequacy.  The Government was pleased with the outcome of these processes and, in particular, with the commitment demonstrated by the research agencies and funding bodies to supporting the NRPs. 

After broad consultation with the research community and the general public, the priority goals (there are several goals under each of the four Priorities) were enhanced during 2003 to strengthen the contributions of social sciences and humanities research.

The new goals are:

• Responding to climate change and variability (under the Priority ‘An environmentally sustainable Australia’)
• Strengthening Australia’s social and economic fabric (under the Priority  ‘Promoting and maintaining good health’)
• Promoting an innovative culture and economy (under the Priority ‘Frontier technologies for building and transforming Australian industries’)
• Understanding our region and the world (under the Priority ‘Safeguarding Australia’)

NRP reporting research performing and funding bodies    (45.7 KB) were asked in early 2004 to review their original implementation plans to take account of the new goals, and were also given the option of describing recent developments in their implementation of the NRPs.

The original NRP implementation plans and their revisions in 2004 to address the new priority goals are: