Economic Governance and Australian Rural Development: Redefining Sustainability

Abstract

This article explores the proposition that regional governance systems are a crucial component of the processes contributing to the sustainability of rural economies and societies. For present purposes, any governance system includes a range of formal and informal agencies, institutions and actors who interact to shape the spatial evolution of economy and society. The most obvious formal actor is government, including the legislature, an executive (in Australia's case, for example, Prime Minister and Cabinet), the bureaucracy, independent authorities (such as the Reserve Bank and High Court), statutory corporations, and advisory bodies. Among Australia's pre-eminent advisory organisations are the Productivity Commission, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the Bureau or Agriculture and Resource Economics (ABARE), and the Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Many countries have several overlapping and interacting tiers of government - the Australian Federation has three - each with similarly complex structures. Government does not reside in splendid isolation. Rather, it is located within Civil Society. In most democratic societies, the latter comprises a vast range of independent and often conflicting institutions, organisations, groups, or even important individuals. Each of these has a private agenda that is pursued in either of two ways. One course of action is to attempt to steer government policy and programs in a preferred direction This usually involves (a) the direct or indirect lobbying of key politicians and bureaucrats or (b) campaigns to influence the general public at election time. Such lobbying or campaigning can be carried out singly or among coalitions of interested parties. The second course, which is often forgotten but is probably much more important, is to get on with the daily business of investing, making production decisions, and doing deals with other elements of civil society.