Stimulus projects for drought-hit shires too slow and limited, report finds

Ernst & Young review finds several factors preventing 'rapid, targeted and impactful' funding

Projects aimed at stimulating drought-affected communities are taking almost 18 months to complete, says a review of the Coalition's drought communities program, raising doubts about the $300m scheme's effectiveness.

As the government announced a shake-up of the funding model to guide a $47m expansion of the program, a review undertaken by Ernst & Young has found that the design of the flagship drought package has so far shown "limited ability to target areas being economically affected because of drought".