Pictured: Chair of RCA Cr Kylie King around the table in Canberra with National Alliance for Regionalisation Chair Mr Mike Mrdak AO and Regional Australia Institute CEO Ms Liz Ritchie
Regional Capitals Australia (RCA) has today joined 30 national peak bodies to form the National Alliance for Regionalisation with the aim of working together for a better future for regional Australia.
Established by the Regional Australia Institute (RAI), the new Alliance is the first of its kind in Australia spanning business, health, education, infrastructure and environment.
“Today is an important day, we know regional Australia is the economic engine room of this country, but to make the most of this competitive advantage we have real challenges we need to address so our communities thrive,” Cr Kylie King Chair of Regional Capitals Australia said.
“RCA is thrilled to represent our members in the National Alliance for Regionalisation to ensure we are working collectively to put regions in the driving seat and create growing, liveable and productive regional capitals,” Cr Kylie King Chair of Regional Capitals Australia said.
The National Alliance for Regionalisation will have the task of advancing targets set out in the RAI’s Regionalisation Ambition 2032 – a 10 year framework to rebalance the nation. The Alliance will also advocate for the policy priorities needed to create a fairer, more prosperous, more balanced regional Australia.
RCA made a pledge to seal a commitment to 2032 Ambition. RCA pledged to support our members to plan for accommodating a greater share of Australia’s population. RCA also pledged to advocate for the development of a national population plan that incorporates:
- An accelerated immigration policy with distinct regional streams of visas;
- Investment in education infrastructure and programs that build the skills and contributions of our communities; and
- Connectivity and liveability infrastructure that allows our member cities to be nationally and internationally competitive as the best places to live and work.
“RCA would like to congratulate the RAI leading the formation of this important forum, I’m optimistic that through the power of collective action we can deliver critical change to address key areas such as population growth, regional housing, community infrastructure and workforce skills,” Cr King explained.
Regional Capitals Australia (RCA) can offer a unique insight into existing regional policy challenges, as the only voice of Australia’s 51 regional capitals representing the needs of an estimated 9 million people.