NATIONAL CENTRE FOR DAIRY EDUCATION - AUSTRALIA (NCDEA) Business group: FPD Program: Vocational Education & Training (VET) o Increased educational opportunities for dairy people (farmers, students, the processing sector and service providers) o Information and education programs relevant to industry needs and delivered to industry agreed standards o Career pathways for those choosing dairy as their preferred industry and vocation o A partnership between industry and innovative dairy VET providers across Australia In 2006, with the withdrawal of Melbourne University from VET, the dairy industry (via Dairy Australia) combined with Goulburn Ovens TAFE and won the ability to deliver dairy training in on-farm pursuits, processing and manufacturing across Victoria. The partnership became the NCDEA with the vision to deliver not only in Victoria, but across Australia. That vision is now a reality. The NCDEA now delivers over 300,000 student contact hours of training per year to dairy farmers, students and broader industry across Australia; and that number of hours is rapidly expanding. In conjunction with VET partners across Australia, the programs cover all aspects of dairy farming from Certificate 2 Level accreditation to Certificate 6 Level accreditation. The NCDEA is working closely with all major industry programs to provide alternative avenues for information and skill delivery to industry and secure alternative means of funding. During 2007, the NCDEA will provide training and education valued at over $2.5 million to the dairy industry in Australia – a remarkable figure in such a short space of time. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MoU) BETWEEN DAIRY AUSTRALIA AND DAIRY INSIGHT Business group: FPD Program: all RD&E-related programs o Greater cross-Tasman collaboration in RD&E o Drive greater value from the investment of farmer levies in RD&E In July 2006, an agreement was reached between Dairy Australia and Dairy Insight (New Zealand) to seek greater collaboration and drive greater value from the investment of farmer levies in RD&E for the dairy industry on both sides of the Tasman. The agreement is based on the philosophy that sharing investment approaches and strategic thinking and forging closer ties between researchers will greatly improve the efficiency of RD&E and the potential to make gains for both countries. This has fuelled a wealth of collaborative activity in the 12 months since the agreement was signed, including: participation in strategic reviews of projects; developing future collaborative projects; contributing to the planning of investment in major programs of work; and the sharing of key resources. The InCalf project, an extension package developed by Dairy Australia to improve the fertility of dairy herds, is the first major resource to be shared under the MoU. Dairy Insight will offer this package to New Zealand dairy farmers and will fast track the development of a local learning package. Australia will also benefit from New Zealand’s development work through the sharing of inputs and resources. The MoU is designed to foster genuine collaboration between Dairy Australia and Dairy Insight so that information and resources will be shared for the mutual benefit of the dairy industries in both countries.
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