It’s important to be prepared for a crisis and know what to do when one happens. There are roles for everyone to play before, during and after a crisis. 

Our states and territories are the first responders for local incidents. But crisis management relies on partnerships between:

• communities,
• all levels of government,
• industry and,
• non-governmental organisations. 

The Australian Government Crisis Management Framework (AGCMF) outlines the roles and responsibilities of the Australian Government during a crisis.

Australian Government Crisis Management Framework

The AGCMF is the Australian Government’s key policy for crisis management. It frames national crisis management arrangements across a crisis management continuum . The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) is responsible for maintaining the AGCMF.

Lead Australian Government ministers, senior officials and agencies for each hazard are listed in the AGCMF. Under the AGCMF, we’re the:

• Australian Government Coordinating Agency for natural hazards and space weather.
• Sector Lead Agency for the domestic components of international crises.
• Australian Government’s all-hazard Enabling Agency.
• Australian Government Coordinating Agency for Tier 4 and novel events.

The Australian Government helps reduce harm to our communities by coordinating national resources during a crisis. This can include resources such as firefighting aircraft or trained crisis planners. It may also include strategic and operational capabilities that help to prepare for, respond to and recover from a crisis. 

National plans

Australia is affected by a variety of hazards every year, ranging in scale, complexity and impact. The impacts of natural hazards, such as tropical cyclones, bushfires, earthquakes and disease outbreaks may cause a crisis. Human-induced hazards, such as cyber-attacks, may also result in a crisis. 

To help governments understand and respond to these challenges, there are a number of Australian Government National Response Plans (National Plans).

Natural hazards and space weather

We're the Australian Government's Coordinating Agency for natural hazards and space weather. We coordinate the Australian government's response to crises caused by these hazards. Our support could include sending a firefighting aircraft to a State needing additional resources to fight bushfires.

We maintain the following National Plans for natural hazards and space weather:

• Australian Government Disaster Response Plan (COMDISPLAN).
• Australian Government Space Re-Entry Debris Plan (AUSSPREDPLAN).

Domestic components of international crises

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is the Australian Government Coordinating Agency for crises occurring overseas. While we’re the Sector Lead Agency for coordinating the domestic components of these crises. For example, during an international crisis, we may coordinate domestic support that Australia would deploy to a country in need. This could include deploying doctors or trained urban search and rescue personnel overseas to provide support to a country after an earthquake.

We own and maintain the following National Plans for international crises:

• Australian Government Overseas Assistance Plan (AUSASSISTPLAN).
• Australian Government Plan for the Reception of Australian Citizens and Approved Foreign Nationals Evacuated from Overseas (AUSRECEPLAN).
• Australian Government Response Plan for Overseas Mass Casualty Incidents (OSMASSCASPLAN).  

Tier 4 crises and novel hazards

We are the Australian Government Coordinating Agency for Tier 4 and novel crises. In the AGCMF’s four-tier crisis model, a Tier 4 crisis is the most significant crisis and can be caused by any hazard. A novel, or ambiguous, hazard is one that’s not been anticipated, and can’t be responded to using any existing National Plans. If a novel hazard would cause a crisis, we will be the Australian Government Coordinating Agency until a more appropriate agency is identified.

Our Crisis Management Capabilities

We have several capabilities and skills within our agency that help provide whole-of- government leadership and support. Find out more about these capabilities below.

• The National Situation Room (NSR) provides 24/7 all-hazard situational awareness, impact analysis, and decision support.
• The Australian Government Joint Crisis Coordination Team (CCT) is a dedicated all-hazards crisis management capability. It is activated in accordance with the AGCMF.
• The National Coordination Mechanism (NCM) enables government, industry, non-government and other stakeholders to come together to coordinate and collaborate throughout the crisis management continuum.
• Our Coordination and Planning Officers (CPOs) are jurisdictional liaisons who act as a bridge between State and Territory Governments, and the Australian Government.
• The National Joint Common Operating Picture (NJCOP) is a visual, digital platform providing a holistic, near real-time picture of incidents across Australia, including current and emerging crises and their potential impacts.
• The Crisis Appreciation and Strategic Planning (CASP) is a structured, systematic methodology that uses strategic thinking and conceptualisation to support crisis planning. The CASP methodology is embedded in the AGCMF.

Administration

The Emergency Management and Response (EMR) Group is responsible for the development and maintenance of our National Plans.

The EMR Group also acts as the Secretariat to the Australian Government Planning Group. This is a forum for Australian Government agencies. We use this to share updates on emergency management arrangements and planning activities. It also involves consultation on National Plans.

You can provide suggestions to improve or amend our National Plans by emailing contact@nema.gov.au.