Key industries in Australia's Tropical Savanna

Abstract

Covering approximately one quarter of mainland Australia, the Tropical Savanna (TS) is home to fewer than 3 percent of all Australians. Yet it accounts for close to 30 percent of the nation’s exports and contains more than 70 percent of Australia’s freshwater resources. Not surprisingly, there is considerable interest in the region’s potential for further economic growth and a consequent need for information about the socio-economic structure of its communities. This paper uses data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and from a survey of more than 900 organisations in the TS, to identify and describe key industries of the region. It demonstrates that communities in the TS – particularly those in remote and very remote parts – are NOT just ‘smaller versions’ of larger, Australian communities. Their economic structure differs, sometimes significantly, from that of Australia as a whole. And the economic structure of some communities, often differ significantly from those that adjoin them.