People & Capability Program
The People and Capability Program is a new pilot that will fund practical, industry-led initiatives to address workforce pressures with our Levied and Emerging Industries. The program aims to support solutions that attract, develop and retain people, while building a stronger, more resilient agricultural industry.
Applications open on Monday, 16 February 2026.
About
AgriFutures Australia invests in research, development, and innovation to advance the prosperity, sustainability, and resilience of Australia’s rural industries. A key priority is building a workforce capable of driving innovation, technology adoption, and leadership across rural industries
From chicken meat and rice to industrial hemp and truffles, workforce attraction and retention is one of the most significant constraints on the growth of both levied and emerging industries support by AgriFutures.
The People and Capability Program offers grants for industry and providers to design and deliver tailored programs that address the challenges and opportunities identified in the Workforce Strategy, supporting AgriFutures Levied and Emerging Industries.
Program objectives:
- Provide a longer-term, strategic plan for fair allocation of capacity-building funding across levied and emerging industries.
- Understand and respond to current and future workforce needs.
- Attract and retain skilled industry participants by identifying and enabling key drivers of attraction and retention.
- Support capability development by equipping stakeholders with the skills and confidence to lead effectively.
- Respond to workforce and leadership needs unique to levied and emerging industries.
- Embed measurement and evaluation frameworks to demonstrate workforce impact.
Scope of grants
Industry Workforce Program Grants (up to $25,000)
Designed as a clear and transparent mechanism for distributing an annual allocation of funds to support Levied and Emerging Industries workforce needs.
Providers will be required to:
- Develop, design, and/or deliver an industry-specific program tailored to a levied or emerging industry (new or existing).
- Demonstrate alignment with AgriFutures’ priorities and industry needs.
- Engage stakeholders to co-design relevant activities, ensuring programs are practical, scalable, and industry led.
- Incorporate innovative approaches to workforce attraction, retention, and skills development, including technology and leadership pathways.
- Provide evaluation and reporting to AgriFutures’ impact framework.
Capacity Building Grants (up to $10,000)
Designed for industry associations to nominate individuals or groups for funding that benefits their industry.
Applications should:
- Showcase knowledge-sharing for levied and emerging industries.
- Demonstrate motivation and skills to lead industries into the future.
Who can apply
We are inviting Industry associations, individuals and service providers who have a new or existing program which can address workforce or capacity building challenges for Levied or Emerging Industries. The application must be able to design and deliver initiatives that support workforce attraction, retention and skills development.
How to apply
Applications links are the below:
Please ensure you have read and agree with the program T&C’s prior to applying.
Timeline
Activity |
Date |
Applications open |
Monday, 16 February 2026 |
Applications close |
Friday, 13 March 2026 |
Intended completion date of evaluation of submissions |
Friday, 10 April 2026 |
Expected execution of contract or issue of agreement |
Friday, 1 May 2026 |
Date of commencement of projects |
Monday, 4 June 2026 |
Assessment Criteria
Industry Workforce Program Grants |
|
Mandatory Requirements |
Weighting |
Project overview: • Project title and summary are clear, relevant, and concise. • Project objectives align with workforce needs in levied or emerging industries. • The summary demonstrates understanding of industry context and AgriFutures’ priorities. |
30% |
Impact & scalability: • The project addresses a genuine workforce challenge or opportunity. • Expected impact is well-defined (number of beneficiaries, industry reach, scalability). • Sustainability and scalability beyond the bursary period are clearly explained. • Stakeholder involvement in co-design and delivery is practical and meaningful. |
40% |
Project plan: • The project plan is detailed, realistic, and achievable. • Key objectives, milestones, timelines, deliverables and budget breakdown are clear and justified. • The plan demonstrates value for money and feasibility. |
30% |
Capacity Building Grants |
|
Mandatory Requirements |
Weighting |
Project overview: • Project title and summary are clear, relevant, and concise. • Project objectives align with capacity building and leadership needs in the industry. • The summary demonstrates understanding of industry context and AgriFutures’ priorities. |
30% |
Impact & Scalability: • The project builds leadership and capability for the industry. • Knowledge and skills sharing across levied and emerging industries is well described. • Success measures (KPIs) and alignment with AgriFutures’ impact framework are robust. |
40% |
Project plan: • The project plan is detailed, realistic, and achievable. • Key objectives, milestones, timelines, deliverables and budget breakdown are clear and justified. • The plan demonstrates value for money and feasibility. |
30% |
Terms of Reference
AgriFutures Australia uses standard form contracts and agreements for projects and research procured by AgriFutures Australia (please refer to https://www.agrifutures.com.au/contracts-and-agreements/). These contracts and agreements set out the terms on which AgriFutures Australia will engage successful applicants to carry out the project.
Applicants must be familiar with the contracts and agreements before submitting a response, and are advised to seek legal advice beforehand.
These contracts and agreements have been developed to reflect AgriFutures Australia’s statutory and other procurement responsibilities.
If you require any amendments to the standard agreement please complete the statement of non-compliance for each of the relevant clause. AgriFutures will then assess those requests.
Applicants will be taken to have agreed to all clauses in the Service Provider Agreement that are not referred to in a statement of non-compliance. The extent of any non-compliance will be a factor in AgriFutures Australia’s evaluation of the application.
If you require further information regarding these contracts and agreements please contact:
Contact
If you have any questions about the People and Capability Program, please contact:
Frequently Asked Questions
What industries must applications support?
The People & Capability Grants are for providers (company or individual) who can design, develop and execute a workforce or capacity program for 1 or more of our Levied and Emerging Industries (AgriFutures industries) only.
AgriFutures represents 13 levied industries including chicken meat, rice, honey bee and pollination, ginger, tea tree oil, pasture seeds, export fodder, thoroughbred horses, kangaroo, buffalo, deer, goat fibre, and ratite. The organisation also invests in a diverse range of emerging industries such as industrial hemp, truffles, coffee, hazelnuts, insects, sesame, crocodile, Indigenous native foods, , supporting high-potential sectors to grow and reach new markets.
If the program supports 1 of the above Industries you are eligible, if it doesn’t you are not.
Could you please advise of a date the project funds need to be expended by?
This grant will support a year of the program. We would do a 90% upfront payment then the remaining 10% at completion of the year which will align with reporting.
Why would I select 'other' for the question 'Which Industry does your project support?'
You would only select ‘other’ if your project supports all the AgriFutures Levied and Emerging Industries.
If your project does not support an AgriFutures Levied or Emerging Industry you are not eligible to apply.
Can you please share the successful contract template?
Sure can, see here.
Digital versus field-based delivery: Are digitally delivered or hybrid models acceptable as a primary delivery approach for geographically dispersed industries such as honey bee and pollination?
All models are appropriate, however they must be relevant to the Levied or Emerging Industries needs which you are addressing.
Definition of "innovation": How does AgriFutures define "innovative approaches" in the context of workforce programs, particularly where delivery is digitally enabled?
Innovation does not always have to be tech based, it can be research or a new way of thinking.
Workforce outcomes weighting: Are workforce attraction, retention and skills development weighted equally in assessment, or is one outcome prioritised over others?
Please refer to the assessment criteria above.
Priority skill gaps: Are there specific skill gaps, whether technical, operational, leadership or compliance-related, that AgriFutures is seeking to address through this program?
We would hope that the service provider has a sound understanding of the Levied or Emerging Industry they are addressing and would know the specific skills gap.
Scope of digital interventions: What types of digital workforce interventions does AgriFutures consider within scope? For example, online training, mobile learning, remote workforce platforms, digital job-matching or digital compliance training
All digital interventions will be considered, as long as they are relevant to the Levied or Emerging Industries needs which you are addressing.
Delivery partners: Are there expectations or preferences regarding who delivers program activities, or is this at the applicant's discretion?
It is expected that the program will be delivered by the applicant or applicants’ team.
Grant funding: Could grant funding be used to partly support a Master of Research stipend, where the research is directly aligned with the program's workforce outcomes?
Yes, confirming funding can be used to part-fund research, however it must be relevant to the Levied or Emerging Industries needs which you are addressing.