Greens commitment to Global Goals and an effective Australian aid program welcomed by ChildFund

Sydney, Australia, 14 June 2016: Today’s announcement by The Australian Greens that it will increase overseas aid to 0.7 percent over the next decade, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, has been welcomed by ChildFund Australia.

The Greens aid policy, launched today, states that Australia, as a wealthy nation, should provide support to less developed countries, and contribute its fair share to long-term development.

Senator di Natale also stated that the key purpose of Australia’s aid program should be alleviating poverty, not the promotion of national political and commercial interests.

ChildFund Australia CEO Nigel Spence said: “Government changes in Australia’s aid policy direction in recent years have seen economic growth, private sector involvement, large-scale infrastructure funding and aid for trade become central to the Government’s aid program.

“As stated in our pre-budget submission this year, ChildFund believes that the primary, and overriding, objective of Australia’s overseas aid program must be human development. We support this commitment by The Greens to an Australian Aid program that prioritises poverty reduction.”

The Green’s aid policy also commits to greater funding being made available for humanitarian emergencies; the establishment of a separate and independent department to oversee aid delivery; and the provision of targeted climate change assistance to countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

Mr Spence added: “We are also glad to see The Green’s aid policy recognise the importance of gender equality in international development programs. ChildFund’s experience points to the fact that poverty disproportionately affects women and girls.

“However, we are also witness to the high return on investment where programs are implemented which address discrimination and disadvantage for women and girls. For example, investment in girls’ education has proven to increase the number of female wage earners in society, increase productivity for employers, and reduce the incidence of child marriage.”

Regardless of who wins the election, ChildFund Australia calls on all political representatives to reach consensus on the future direction of Australia’s aid program and make a commitment to providing effective and long-term support to children and families living in poverty.

Mr Spence said: “The Australian Aid program helps to save lives. The data shows that globally six million fewer children die today than in 1990. Australian Aid has contributed to this achievement. We have much to be proud of.

“Our aid program also provides real benefits at home – stability and peace in our region, new trading markets for Australian businesses, and greater collaboration with our nearest neighbours. Supporting Australian Aid is not only the morally right thing to do, it makes good economic sense.”

ChildFund Australia welcomes Labor’s announcement today that it will reverse the $224m cut made in this year’s budget if it wins the July election, ChildFund Australia CEO Nigel Spence says.

“The recent budget cut to the aid program has reduced Australia’s support to developing countries to the lowest level in our history. I commend Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Tanya Plibersek for her decision to overturn this final blow, which comes after years of budget cuts by both sides of politics.

“However, we believe that this should just be the first step of many by whichever party wins Government. A substantial change in government policy is required if we are to reduce poverty, increase economic prosperity and fight the negative impacts of climate change within our region and beyond.”

Since 2013, $11bn has been taken out of Australia’s overseas development assistance budget, while also increasingly being used to defray domestic costs such as asylum seeker programs. At its height in 2012-13, the aid budget was equivalent to $240 per Australian. Today, we are spending just $157 per Australian on aid each year.

Mr Spence said: “Last year, the single biggest cut to the aid program took place – funding was reduced by $1bn and diminished the total aid budget by 20 per cent, despite the fact that the challenges facing many children and families in the Asia-Pacific region have increased.”

While life-threatening poverty is reducing, with the Millennium Development Goals playing an important role in this progress, pockets of extreme poverty remain, and organisations like ChildFund, working at grassroots, are witness to the rising inequalities within nations.

Mr Spence said: “In many of the countries where ChildFund works, we are seeing new risks to children emerge, while existing threats have grown stronger. Today, we have the highest number of displaced people, and extreme weather events due to global warming are resulting in more humanitarian emergencies.”

ChildFund Australia now calls on the Coalition Government to match or improve upon Labor’s aid policy. It also urges political representatives to work together to reach consensus on the future direction of the Australian aid program.

Mr Spence said: “Improving the living standards of families in our region is not just the morally right thing to do, it has real benefits for Australia – greater peace and stability, new trading markets for Australian businesses, and improved relations with our nearest neighbours.

“Regardless of who wins the election, we want to see bipartisan support for restoring our life-saving aid program, and ensuring future aid policies and funding provides predictable, effective and long-term support.”