During 2019-20, 26 new consultancy contracts were entered into and this resulted in expenditure of $2.063 million for the period. In addition, 28 ongoing consultancy contracts were active during 2019-20 resulting in expenditure of $3.327 million.

All consultancy contracts entered into by AFMA above the value of $10 000 are available via the Austender website.

Selection and engagement of consultants

The majority of consultancy services engaged during the 2019-20 were for fisheries research purposes. The selection and engagement of research consultants was primarily conducted through a limited tender because of the small pool of qualified vendors for these specific services.