The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will be refreshing its research strategy, with a new set of priorities to identify the questions that need to be answered to support future policymaking, driven by the findings of the RBA review, the central bank's Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser said in a speech on Wednesday.

It will "use those priorities to hold ourselves to account," he added.

He identified an emphasis on small open economy macroeconomics, with a particular role for the commodities and energy sectors as well as a capacity to develop the analytical tools, such as small open economy quantitative macro-models and macroeconomic data, as defining features of Australian macroeconomic thought.

Understanding the macroeconomic risks and opportunities from structural changes in the global economy should be a vital priority for research, he added.

Hauser characterized the rolling back of free trade, the impact of geopolitics, climate change, and the need to boost productivity growth globally as the major macroeconomic challenges facing the Australian economy in the future.

In order to meet these challenges, the country needs to draw in its best talent, strengthen the incentives for policy-relevant research, and deepen links between academics and policymakers, Hauser added.