Doing more for rural & regional Queensland

1 July brought the start of a new era, as QRAA became the Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority.

QRAA supported Queensland businesses for over 23 years, providing government financial assistance and approving over $250 million in funding last financial year alone. Now, we’re staying true to our history and values as a trusted financial partner, while embracing the larger role we have to play for the benefit of rural and regional Queenslanders.

From head office in Brisbane to our regional staff across the state, the entire team is energized by the changes and we’ thrilled to be putting our passion and knowledge to work in new (and old) areas.

Here are some of the key things that 1 July brought to us, and to Queensland:

Farm Business Debt Mediation

Replacing a previous voluntary scheme, the new Farm Business Debt Mediation program is now mandatory in Queensland. ensures an equitable resolution for both farmers and lenders at what can be a distressing time. QRIDA is responsible for accrediting mediators and overseeing the process – you can find all information on the program, from mediation guidelines to a register of mediator profiles, at www.qrida.qld.gov.au/fbdm

More opportunities to provide a voice for rural Queensland

As the Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority, we now have a policy and advice role. Using our understanding of lending, grants administration and rural and regional Queensland, we’re undertaking research and advising wider government including the biennial Rural Debt Survey.

Wider scope for program administration and consultancy

Although best known for administering programs in the rural sector, our organization has been involved in schemes across a wide range of industries for many years – for example, we are in the process of delivering almost $100 million in financial assistance to Queensland’s taxi and limousine industry on behalf of Translink. As our scope and role widens, the doors are open for even more government agencies and programs to utilize QRIDA ‘s expertise in financial assistance delivery.

Increases and updates on existing programs

Although separate to our transition to QRIDA, a number of exciting things also happened to our existing offerings on 1 July:

•  After unprecedented demand in 2016-17 saw funds fully committed, our First Start and Sustainability Loans are now open for application again, with $120 million available in 2017-18. Interest rates for these loans also dropped, and are now as low as 3.02% for newly drawn down accounts.
• Under the Commonwealth-funded Farm Business Concessional Loans Scheme, Drought Assistance Concessional Loans have been extended into 2017-18, and new Business Improvement Concessional Loans have been introduced to help producers recover from financial hardship.

For more information on our schemes, services, and how we’re doing more for rural and regional Queensland, visit www.qrida.qld.gov.au