Part I. Background

1. The Primary Industries Ministerial Council (PIMC) in April 2007, with support from all Research and Development Corporations (RDCs) and the Australian Council of the Deans of Agriculture (ACDA) agreed to establish a National Framework for Primary Industries Research, Development and Extension (RD&E).
   
   
2. This document provides the structural arrangements and commitment of the organisations (collectively referred to as “the Parties”) to work collectively and collaboratively to implement the National Primary Industries RD&E Framework and underpinning sector and cross sector strategies.
   
   
3. The concept of ‘National R with Regional D&E’, endorsed by PIMC in 2005, recognises that basic and strategic research (R) can be provided from a distance, with regional adaptive development (D) and local extension (E) required to improve the uptake of innovation by industry.
   
   
4. The principles are intended to guide efforts to enhance the collaboration, coordination, efficiency and effectiveness of RD&E efforts nationally. In addition, continued and coordinated investment in RD&E helps to provide Australia’s primary industries with the necessary capability (people. infrastructure and information) to improve their productivity, sustainability and competitiveness.
   
   
5. The Parties have responsibilities for primary industries RD&E investments and have agreed that implementing the Principles for Developing a National Primary Industries RD&E Framework will have benefits of fostering a strong culture of collaboration and coordination between the Parties and other stakeholders, and help to strengthen national research capabilities to better address sector and cross sector issues. The principles will promote continuous improvement in the investment of RD&E resources nationally by helping to ensure that they are applied efficiently, effectively and collaboratively and to, inter alia, overcome capability gaps, fragmentation and unnecessary duplication in the national system for primary industries RD&E.  
   
   
6. Parties
   
   The commitment to implement the National Primary Industries RD&E Framework is made between all PISC agencies, RDCs and ACDA. The Parties include:
   
   Australian Council of the Deans of Agriculture
   
   Australian Egg Corporation Limited
   
   Australian Government represented by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
   
   Australian Pork Limited
   
   Australian Wool Innovation Limited
   
   Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
   
   Cotton Research and Development Corporation
   
   Dairy Australia Limited
   
   Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
   
   Forest and Wood Products Australia Limited
   
   Grains Research and Development Corporation
   
   Grape and Wine Research and Development Corporation
   
   Horticulture Australia Limited
   
   Australian Livestock Export Corporation Limited (LiveCorp)
   
   Meat and Livestock Australian Limited
   
   New South Wales Government represented by the Department of Primary Industries
   
   Northern Territory Government represented by the Department of Regional Development, Primary Industry, Fisheries and Resources
   
   Queensland Government represented by the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation
   
   Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation
   
   South Australian Government represented by the Department of Primary Industries and Resources SA, and the South Australian Research and Development Institute
   
   Sugar Research and Development Corporation
   
   Tasmanian Government represented by the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water & Environment, and the Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Resources
   
   Victorian Government represented by the Department of Primary Industries
   
   Western Australian Government represented by the Department of Agriculture and Food, the Department of Fisheries, and the Forest Products Commission

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