What is Package Assisting Small Exporters?
The Package Assisting Small Exporters is a grant opportunity to help organisations and individuals with projects that support small exporters in the dairy, fish, eggs, grain, plant, horticulture, meat and animal products industries to overcome barriers to market access.
Background
In 2013, the government established the Package Assisting Small Exporters to improve market access for small exporters in the dairy, fish, eggs, grain, plant, horticulture, meat and animal product industries. The program commenced with approximately $10 million available for funding projects that directly benefitted small exporters, particularly those that would improve market access for small exporters. A further $0.45 million was made available from 2017–18 for distribution over the period 2017-18 to 2021-22.
In 2019, the government announced $6.1 million over four years to extend the program to continue to support small exporters to overcome barriers to market access. $5 million is available for distribution over the period 2019-20 to 2022-23.
Objectives
The objective of the program is:
- to assist small exporters in the dairy, fish, eggs, grain, plant, horticulture, meat and animal product industries to overcome barriers to market access.
The intended outcome of the program is:
- for small exporters (and potential small exporters) to increase their participation in the export sector.
Funding
The Australian Government announced a total of $6.1 million (GST exclusive) over four years to extend the program. For this grant opportunity, a total of $5 million (GST exclusive) grant funding is available over three years.
The grant opportunity will run from 1 June 2020 to 30 June 2023. There is no minimum or maximum grant amount but grants cannot exceed the amount of available funds.
No additional grant funding will be available if a project comes in over budget. The successful grantee must manage this risk to ensure the grant activity is completed in full. If a project is not completed in accordance with the grant agreement, grant funds may need to be returned.
Eligible Projects
Projects that are eligible for funding include those that:
- improve the capacity for small exporters to access markets
- are relevant to one or more of the following commodity sectors:
- dairy
- eggs / fish
- grain and plant products
- horticulture
- meat and animal products
- are sustainable (i.e. projects should have the potential for longer term benefits to be realised by the broader industry sector).
Eligible projects may include, but are not limited to:
- the development of systems to meet the standards required by regulators and customers
- market intelligence to allow small exporters to target or tailor their products
- the implementation of systems to perform procedural and administrative functions essential to exporting products
- the development of innovative solutions to address technical barriers to market access
Eligible Applicants
To be eligible you must be a legal entity with an Australian Business Number (ABN), have an account with an Australian financial institution and be capable of entering into a legally binding and enforceable deed with the Commonwealth. This includes the following entity types:
- Indigenous Corporation
- Company
- Corporate Commonwealth Entity
- Non-Corporate Commonwealth Entity
- Non-Corporate Commonwealth Statutory Authority
- Commonwealth Company
- Corporate State or Territory Entity
- Non-corporate State or Territory Entity
- Non-corporate State or Territory Statutory Authority
- Local Government
- Cooperative
- Incorporated Association
- Sole Trader
- Statutory Entity
- Partnership
- Person
- Trustee on behalf of a Trust
Grant recipients will not be limited to small exporters, but projects must primarily be for the benefit of small exporters.
For each project, the Commonwealth will only enter into a single grant agreement with a single legal entity. The Commonwealth will not execute grant agreements with trusts – only trustees are eligible to execute grant agreements. In a legally binding partnership, the executing partner must have authorisation from all other partners to execute the grant agreement.
Applications from consortia are acceptable, as long as you have a lead applicant who is solely accountable to the Commonwealth for the delivery of the project and is an eligible entity as per the list above. Eligible organisations can form a consortium with ineligible organisations
Timing
Applications close 28 February 2020.
