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Facts
- In 2008-09 the Australian Government plans to spend almost $3.7 billion on development assistance. This is an estimated 0.32% of Gross National Income for the year.
- The Australian Government's aid program focuses on the four interlinked themes of accelerating economic growth, fostering functioning and effective states, investing in people and promoting regional stability and cooperation particularly in the Asia Pacific region.
- Australian government funding for NGOs through AusAID amounted to $92.11 million, which is around 9.7% of the total funds raised by the sector.
- In 2006 the Australian community contributed $ 724.94 million to non-government organisations (NGO) for their overseas programs which makes up 77% of their total funds raised.
- 1,408,837 Australians gave financial support to a NGO during 2006, with 908,221 people belonging to regular supporter programs.
- 124 countries receive Australian NGO support.
- There were 15,544 volunteers contributing their time to the work of ACFID member agencies and Code of Conduct signatory organisations.
Sources: http://www.ausaid.gov.au and http:://www.acfid.asn.au/resources/facts-and-figures/facts-and-figures |
Background
Why does Australia give aid?
Australia is a rich country with values of care and compassion and giving others a 'fair go'. When there is a need there is generally a strong response with offers of money, goods, personal time and knowledge. The Australian Government's overseas aid program aims to assist developing countries reduce poverty and achieve sustainable development, in line with Australia's national interest.
Australia gives aid to other countries because it improves our regional security. Australia helps partner governments improve law and order, prevent and recover from conflict, and manage a range of transnational threats to security such as people trafficking, illicit drugs, HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases. By helping to build stronger communities and more stable governments Australia helps improve their ability to be stable trading partners.
What is the focus of the Australian Government's aid?
Australia's aid program focuses on the four interlinked themes :
- Accelerating economic growth by improving the policies, promoting trade, developing infrastructure, building skilled workforces and addressing the environmental challenges
- Fostering functioning and effective states through governance and human rights
- Investing in people through health and education
- Promoting regional stability and cooperation
For further information: http://www.ausaid.gov.au/makediff/
How is aid delivered?
Australia works with a range of partner organisations including other Australian Government Departments, the United Nations, Australian and international companies and Non-Government Organisations to design and set up projects which tackle the causes and consequences of poverty in developing countries.
The Australian Government's overseas aid is distributed in a number of forms:
- Bilateral aid – Aid given from the government of one country to
the government of
another country. In designing an aid program for an individual country, Australia works closely with the country's government and its communities. The idea is to make sure that each program reflects the country's development priorities, our aid policies and our capacity to assist. These programs can incorporate a wide range of activities from small community-based projects to large regional development schemes.
- Multilateral aid – Aid is given by the governments of many countries and distributed through international organisations such as the United Nations, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the World Food Programme.
Australia supports effective multilateral agencies engaged in poverty reduction and sustainable development to complement and reinforce its bilateral aid. This aid is for large scale projects which include emergency relief and funding for transnational issues such as global warming and control of disease, and large scale infrastructure projects. Australia has sought to improve the effectiveness of these organisations by focusing on donor coordination, good governance and sound economic policies.
- Emergency humanitarian relief - Aid to help recovery from disasters and conflict. Australia's emergency, humanitarian and refugee programs respond quickly, flexibly and effectively, providing grants, food aid, medicines and shelter materials. Strengthening preparedness for future emergencies is also part of this response.
- Partnerships with Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) - Grants to NGOs to deliver programs which address AusAID's priorities at a community level. NGOs undergo a strict accreditation program to prove their ability to deliver aid effectively for AusAID.
- Community involvement – Funding for volunteer and education programs within Australia.
How much aid does Australia give?
The Australian Government will provide $3.7 billion on Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2008-09, an increase of $545 million over the 2007-08 figure of $3.155 billion and a real increase of 17.27%. The ratio of Australia's ODA to Gross National Income (GNI) for 2008-09 is estimated at 0.32%.
Which countries receive Australian aid?
Australian Government aid is focussed on the Asia Pacific region. Over 80% of Australia's aid activities are conducted through bilateral aid partnerships with 45 countries in the Asia Pacific. It provides selective assistance to Africa and the Middle East through international and non-government organisations.
The top eight countries for Australia Government aid in 2008 -09 (in millions of dollars)
Indonesia 462.0
Papua New Guinea 389.4
Iraq 313.4
Solomon Islands 236.4
Afghanistan 122.4
Philippines 109.3
East Timor 96.3
Vietnam 93.1
(Aid budget Summary 2008-2009)
View a clickable map of highlights of Australia's aid program http://www.ausaid.gov.au/makediff/map/index.html
How does the Australian community support overseas aid?
In 2006 the Australian community contributed $724.94 million to non-government organisations (NGO) for their overseas programs. This figure includes funds raised from donations, fundraisers, bequests, and company donations, and makes up around 77% of total funds raised by NGOs. Over 1.7 million Australians gave financial support to a NGO during 2006, with 1,408,837 with 908,221 people belonging to regular supporter programs. These funds support programs run by the NGOs in 124 countries. There were also 15,544 volunteers contributing their time to the work of NGOs. The Australian Council for International Development (ACFID) is the independent national association of about 80 Australian non-government organisations working in the field of international aid and development. It administers a Code of Conduct committing members to high standards of integrity and accountability.
What makes aid effective?
Aid can be considered effective to the extent that it assists countries to develop and to overcome poverty. Some factors that can influence the effectiveness of aid are:
- a sound and stable policy framework;
- market based policies which encourage integration in the global economy;
- an emphasis on social development;
- enhanced participation by the local population, and notably by women;
- good governance;
- support for health, education, agriculture and public infrastructure development;
- policies and practices that are environmentally sustainable;
- and better means of preventing and resolving conflict and fostering reconciliation.
Effective aid depends on the partnership between donors and recipients. Donors need to deliver sufficient and predictable aid without unrealistic conditions such as multiple forms of reporting or tied to purchases from the donor countries. Recipients need good governance, to address corruption, and adopt policies that sustain economic growth and improve human development.
Is aid the answer?
Aid is necessary to build an environment where policies and infrastructure can be in place to support other sources of finance. Aid to developing countries is only a small proportion of the total level of external financing provided to developing countries. International trade, foreign direct investment, debt forgiveness, remittances from citizens working overseas and domestic savings all contribute to the development of the country.
For further information:
Australian Government Overseas aid
http://www.ausaid.gov.au
Australian Council for International Development
http://www.acfid.asn.au/resources/facts-and-figures/facts-and-figures
The global agenda
Aid is not a hand out but a hand up. By addressing the massive gap between the haves and have nots aid can help make the world a fairer and a more prosperous place. In a world tightly linked by trade and investment flows, poverty in one country diminishes the potential for prosperity elsewhere. There is an increasing international commitment to improve the quality and quantity of aid.
The United Nations has set a target for developed countries to contribute 0.7% of their Gross National Income in aid to developing countries. The 22 member countries of the OECD Development Assistance Committee, the world’s major donors, provided USD 103.7 billion in aid in 2007. This represents a drop from 0.31% of members’ combined gross national income in 2006 to 0.28% in 2007. It reflects the end of exceptionally high levels of debt relief (notably for Iraq and Nigeria) and a small increase in other official development assistance.
In 2007 Norway, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands all exceeded the 0.7% target. In 2007 the United States was the world's largest single aid donor in volume terms ($US21.8 billion or 0.16% of GNI), followed by Germany ($US12.3 billion, 0.37%),France ($US9.9 billion, 0.39 %), the United Kingdom ($US9.9 billion, 0.36%) and Japan ($US7.7 billion, 0.17%), .
http://www.oecd.org/dac/
Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals commit the international community to an expanded vision of development, one that vigorously promotes human development as the key to sustaining social and economic progress in all countries, and recognizes the importance of creating a global partnership for development. The goals have been commonly accepted as a framework for measuring development progress. Goal 8 calls for an open, rule-based trading and financial system, more generous aid to countries committed to poverty reduction, and relief for the debt problems of developing countries.
http://www.millenniumcampaign.org
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