The 2019 Australian Infrastructure Audit identified that, across economic and social infrastructure, the sector accounts for close to 20% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).1
This emphasises the importance of infrastructure, and underscores the criticality of the sector that delivers and operates it. With record investment underway to support the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the infrastructure sector is primed to play an even greater economic role.
To maximise the benefits for all stakeholders, there needs to be a collaborative effort to tackle legacy processes, behaviours and attitudes across the sector. Doing this successfully will lead to positive infrastructure performance, deliver better value to taxpayers and users, and ultimately make infrastructure an attractive sector to work and do business in. Long-term, this will have a major impact on the sector's productivity and growth.
Infrastructure Australia's recommendations and reforms address some of the sector's major challenges and will transform the sector through:
• balanced commercial arrangements
• more appropriate apportionment of risk between industry and government
• modern and sustainable cultural behaviours
• consistent uptake of best practices including effective due diligence and digitisation.
Implementing these reforms will lift productivity, embed best practice and support innovation. This will maintain the sustainability, affordability and value of infrastructure to the benefit of end users, the sector and governments.
If all tiers of government and industry work together to deliver the right infrastructure, Australia can remain prosperous and productive now and well into the future.