Goal Four of the Economic Development Plan is to support and grow communities within regions.

Tasmania has one of the most decentralised populations of any state in Australia. These smaller, more connected communities contribute to Tasmania being a liveable place. Growing regional economies as attractive places to live and work can help reduce the pressure on Australia's overcrowded cities and also mitigate the effect of concentrating investment and skilled labour in communities that have traditionally relied on resource extraction.

• regional economies
• boosting communities in our region
• regional planning and land use
• capital city plan
• our liveability advantage

Sustainable economic development is an essential element of liveable regional communities. It requires the cooperation of all three tiers of government and the community to develop and adopt relevant place-based approaches.

By focusing on place, we have the ability to understand the risks and the opportunities for sustainable communities. The more communities are dependent on a single or small number of industries, the more vulnerable these communities are to local and global shocks, as evidenced by the impacts as a result of the restructuring of the forest industry.

We need to work with local communities to develop economic development opportunities to support a resilient and diverse economic base. This means considering all resources in the community – human, natural and financial. As a key stakeholder in regional communities, local government will play an important part in this process.

The Tasmanian Government can support growth in regional communities through facilitating regional economic development plans that integrate all tiers of government in the planning and delivery of infrastructure and other services.

These plans can facilitate business activity and place-based investment, and thereby build skills capacity, promote social inclusion and support a stable workforce. These can also facilitate the formation of competitive industry clusters that leverage local capacity and create liveable places.

The Australian Government is also pursuing a strategic approach to regional development. This approach expects all three tiers of government to work together with local communities to find solutions for economic development to achieve a more resilient and diverse economic base. These solutions need to build on local assets and promote collaborative partnerships.

Regional economic strategies will be an essential requirement to access national funds, such as the recently announced Regional Development Australia Fund (RDAF) of approximately $1 billion, to support investment in infrastructure for regional development. The 2011 Federal Budget further increased the focus on regional Australia. For example, $500 million over five years will be allocated to help regional higher education and vocational institutions improve their infrastructure and improve the quality of training and education.

The Tasmanian Government will work closely with the Australian Government to achieve our shared objectives.

Two new initiatives are being introduced: the regional development program and the liveability strategy.

To view a printable version of Goal Four: regional development click here.