By Marc Ablong*
Australia’s escalating geostrategic threats demand more than military might. They require a resilient, united and proactive civil defence framework. (From: The Strategist. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute.)
Civil defence organisations are not just bureaucratic relics or niche emergency responders. They are the frontline shield for Australia’s people against armed conflict and catastrophic emergencies. Their mission is clear: protect civilians, preserve lives and sustain society’s essential functions during crisis. To deliver on this promise effectively, Australia urgently requires a dedicated, nationally coordinated civil defence authority. One that unifies policy, streamlines the allocation of scarce resources and enables swift, efficient protection of citizens and critical infrastructure.
Civil defence agencies are integral to Australia’s resilience against the full spectrum of threats, including military crises and hybrid attacks. Effective civil defence saves lives, mitigates infrastructure damage and sustains essential services under duress. To achieve those results, Australia needs a central, nationally coordinated civil defence body that goes beyond piecemeal emergency management.
Australian civil defence traces its roots back to the 1930s, forged in the shadow of impending war. Defined comprehensively as ‘all measures, other than active defence, taken to minimise the effects of enemy attack on the civil population,’ civil defence has long encompassed societal resilience: keeping industry running, maintaining public services and ensuring government continuity. During the Cold War, Australia maintained these structures, but their functions have since diffused widely into broader emergency response frameworks. Today, civil defence responsibilities are scattered across various emergency services and often heavily reliant on volunteers. This fragmented approach falls short of meeting the complex, evolving threats facing our nation.
Australia is not alone in confronting these challenges. Nations that lead in civil defence, such as Finland, Sweden, India and Singapore, have pioneered total defence strategies: seamlessly integrating military and civilian domains, engaging entire societies and rigorously training and testing for resilience against persistent threats.
Britain is reinvigorating its civil defence capabilities through its 2025 Strategic Defence Review. By reviving the Home Guard, Britain is reestablishing a trained corps of civilian volunteers focused on homeland protection, especially critical infrastructure defence. This semi-professional force bolsters national resilience without inflating full-time military or police numbers.
Civil defence should be differentiated from civilian emergency management bodies like the National Emergency Management Agency. While that agency expertly coordinates responses to natural disasters and civilian crises, its focus is not on defence against hostile aggression or military threats but rather on collaborative civilian-led disaster management. Effective civil defence requires military-civilian integration and security-focused preparedness absent in traditional emergency management.
Australia must establish a National Civil Defence Agency: a federal statutory authority empowered to coordinate state and territory civil defence directorates under a unified, strategic national headquarters. This agency would:
—Lead national preparedness and incident coordination specifically against hostile threats;
—Set rigorous standards for training, exercises, infrastructure resilience and public awareness;
—Manage strategic stockpiles and logistics for large-scale emergencies; and
—Foster seamless collaboration among Defence, state emergency services, health, emergency agencies and critical infrastructure operators.
Beyond institutional efficacy, such an agency would drive civic education, national security culture, and regular engagement of citizens in readiness programs—critical to creating a total defence nation. International experience repeatedly demonstrates that resilience multiplies when defence responsibilities are distributed, trained and exercised across all levels of society. This also aids in developing interoperable protocols, ensuring Australia’s readiness aligns with global partners and standards. This model promises a transformative leap in Australia’s resilience, positioning us alongside the world’s most prepared nations.
The scale and complexity of such an undertaking demand significant investment. Member states of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development typically spendbetween 0.02 percent and 0.1 percent of GDP on civil defence and resilience programs. Given Australia’s geography and strategic challenges, Australia’s initial investment in civil defence should be in the range of $250 million to $500 million per year, scaling up as capacity and partnerships mature. Internationally successful agencies blend government allocations, strategic grants, fee-for-service for specialised readiness programs and industry partnerships. This investment is modest compared to the enormous human and economic costs of unpreparedness (disasters are currently costing Australia $38 billion a year). The challenge of protecting Australia’s people and infrastructure demands serious, sustained investment, where the modest cost of civil defence infrastructure offers geometric returns in resilience, deterrence and security. Investment models from advanced economies show strong links between funding resilience measures and national prosperity.
Our nation’s strategic position grows increasingly precarious in a volatile global landscape. Rebuilding a robust, integrated civil defence system is not merely prudent; it is essential. It promises to safeguard Australians, uphold national prosperity and secure our homeland against the spectrum of future threats—both conventional and hybrid.
