Prioritising Critical Technologies of National Interest in Australia

Abstract

The Australian government has embarked on a plan to shape and coordinate national policy around technologies deemed critical to the national interest. Central to this plan is the ability to balance the three pillars of national interest identified by the government: national security, economic prosperity and social cohesion. Associated with these pillars is the level of sovereignty a nation like Australia requires to ensure it can benefit from those critical technologies when it needs to.

In this report, the authors develop an analytical approach for identifying and prioritising critical technologies of national interest (CTNI) to Australia in a manner that balances national security, economic prosperity and social cohesion requirements. Information from a range of sources, including Australia's domestic (federal) policy environment as well as the rich history of other national and multinational efforts, is reviewed and analysed.

The authors describe a broad, two-step analytical approach that first seeks to identify a long list of CTNI and then uses a policy lens to develop a smaller, prioritised CTNI list that cuts across all policy sectors. Although CTNI might be the policy focus, impacts of other critical functions, such as infrastructure, workforce and supply chain, also need to be considered when prioritising. The authors recommend that a monitoring and evaluation regime be established to support the continued evolution of the analytical approach and the priorities it identifies.

This report will be of interest to policymakers who are involved in technology policy, commercialisation strategic planning, and resource management.