This is the third edition of the Progress in Australian Regions – Yearbook.

The Yearbook charts the development of Australia’s regions over time. The aim is to provide governments, planners, community leaders, academics and other stakeholders with information that could answer the question of how our regions are progressing against economic, social, environmental and governmental measures.

This third edition provides updated information on the same set of indicators as used in previous Yearbooks, providing consistent measures of progress in Australia’s regions over time.

The Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development has recently launched a web-based application which makes the Yearbook data accessible through an interactive electronic format. Importantly, the website also provides a greater level of regional detail than the hardcopy Yearbook is able to – including data by Local Government Areas (LGA) and Regional Development Australia Committee (RDA) boundaries. We anticipate that this will prove a useful tool for those working at smaller geographic scales.

Previous editions of the Yearbook have been well received with users noting the value of regional statistics to policy making, investment decisions, advocacy and planning for local economic development.