Overview

In developing the 2016 Defence White Paper, Defence adopted an integrated approach to bring together for the first time the key elements of investment needed to deliver and sustain Australia’s defence capabilities. The key elements include equipment, infrastructure, information and communications technology, science and technology, and workforce Establishing a ten-year Integrated Investment Program will facilitate the whole-of-capability and whole-of-life approach to investment reflected in the implementation plan for the First Principles Review: Creating One Defence. It will also support strategy-led prioritisation of proposals and greater agility in investment decisions.

The Integrated Investment Program was developed through a comprehensive Force Structure Review that assessed Australia’s defence capability needs to meet the challenges of the future operating environment into the 2030s. In designing the future force, the Force Structure Review ensured alignment between defence strategy, capability, and resources. The result is an affordable and balanced plan for a highly capable, agile and potent Australian Defence Force (ADF) and Defence capability more broadly, to meet our future requirements.

A key objective of the Force Structure Review was to ensure that key enablers of capability such as wharves, airfields, training areas and bases, information and communications technology systems, and supporting science and technology were accorded appropriate priority in investment decisions. Planned investment over the decade to FY 2025–26 recognises the essential contribution of enablers to the generation and sustainment of ADF capability.

The Integrated Investment Program will guide the implementation of the bulk of investment over the decade to FY 2025–26 to build the future force and Defence capability goals of the Defence White Paper. The Integrated Investment Program will be reviewed annually as part of the development of the budget; the Program will evolve in response to changes in Australia’s strategic circumstances, including capability priorities, and developments in technology.