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Inquiry Into Australia's Aid Program in the Indo-Pacific: First Report

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PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA First report Inquiry into Australia's aid program in the Indo-Pacific Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade April 2019 CANBERRA © Commonwealth of Australia ISBN 978-1-74366-961-7 (Printed Version) ISBN 978-1-74366-962-4 (HTML Version) This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License. The details of this licence are available on the Creative Commons website: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/. Contents Foreword ............................................................................................................................................ v Membership of the Committee ...................................................................................................... vii Terms of reference ........................................................................................................................... xv List of abbreviations ...................................................................................................................... xvii List of recommendations ............................................................................................................... xix The Report 1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 1 Overview of the inquiry ....................................................................................................... 1 Conduct of the inquiry ......................................................................................................... 2 Previous inquiries ................................................................................................................. 2 Scope of this first report ....................................................................................................... 3 2 Context of the inquiry............................................................................................. 5 Overview of Australia’s aid program ................................................................................ 5 Regional and international context ................................................................................... 12 Committee comment .......................................................................................................... 21 3 Support for Australia's aid program .................................................................. 23 Levels of public support .................................................................................................... 23 Shifting views on Australia’s aid program ...................................................................... 25 Appropriateness of the term ‘aid’ ..................................................................................... 34 Committee comment .......................................................................................................... 38 iii iv 4 Effectiveness of Australia's aid program .......................................................... 41 Performance framework .................................................................................................... 41 Recent reviews of aid performance .................................................................................. 45 Other views on effectiveness ............................................................................................. 49 Committee comment .......................................................................................................... 57 5 Private sector development .................................................................................. 61 Aid for trade......................................................................................................................... 61 Private sector partnerships ................................................................................................ 69 Local procurement .............................................................................................................. 77 Committee comment .......................................................................................................... 84 6 Empowering women and girls ............................................................................ 91 Focus on improving outcomes for women and girls ..................................................... 91 Stakeholder views ............................................................................................................... 95 Committee comment ........................................................................................................ 102 Continuation of the inquiry ............................................................................................. 105 Appendix A. List of submissions ................................................................................ 107 Appendix B. List of exhibits ......................................................................................... 113 Appendix C. List of public hearings ........................................................................... 115 Foreword Australians are a generous people. This generosity is reflected in the enduring contribution of Australia’s aid program to our partner countries, both in our neighbourhood in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. Australian aid has been there in times of conflict and natural disaster, and has assisted communities to improve health and educational outcomes, increase agricultural productivity, and access international markets. However, aid is not a one-way street. Co-operation with our partner countries has supported Australia’s interests, including in trade, defence, health, and biosecurity. The aid program has also enhanced Australia’s standing in the international community and has been an important avenue through which Australia has exercised strategic influence, particularly in our region. In recent years, changes to the aid program have included an increased focus in the Indo-Pacific region and initiatives in relation to trade and empowering women and girls. This inquiry was an opportunity to examine the effectiveness of these changes and to ensure that the aid program continues to improve outcomes for Australia’s partner counties and supports our interests. While it is clear to the Committee that the aid program has a record of considerable achievement, the Committee has also identified a need to strengthen Australians’ confidence in the aid program. The Committee has therefore recommended measures to raise awareness about the benefits of Australia’s aid program, emphasising that the aid program is one part of a broader, mutually beneficial relationship between Australia and its partner countries. At the same time, the Committee has recommended the Australian Government commit to a timeframe to increase Australia’s investment in aid over the coming decade. Australia has the capacity to do more, and stability and certainty in the aid budget will enable Australia’s aid program to build on its achievements through v vi new investments to assist women and girls, people with a disability, and other poor and marginalised groups. In calling for Australia to invest more in aid, the Committee is mindful that the aid program should be focused on investments that are effective and outcomes that are sustainable. The aid program has a responsibility to maximise the impact of every dollar. As such, the Committee has recommended that investments are more directly linked to the objective of reducing poverty and that local procurement is used wherever possible to avoid distorting local economies. Taken together, the Committee’s recommendations are intended to ensure that the aid program delivers outcomes for Australia, its partner countries, and—most importantly—for those people who are most in need. Given the scope of the aid program, there are other matters that the Committee was not able to consider in the time available in this first report. The Committee therefore encourages members of this Committee in the 46th Parliament to continue this inquiry and address these matters in due course. Lastly, on behalf of the Committee, I thank all of the individuals and organisations who contributed evidence to the inquiry. Mr Chris Crewther MP Chair, Foreign Affairs and Aid Sub-Committee Membership of the Committee Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Chair Senator the Hon Ian Macdonald LNP, QLD (Chair from 11.9.18 to 6.10.18) (Chair from 25.10.18) Deputy Chair Mr Nick Champion MP Wakefield, SA Members Senator the Hon Eric Abetz (from 10.9.18) LP, TAS Dr Anne Aly MP Cowan, WA The Hon Kevin Andrews MP Menzies, VIC Ms Sharon Claydon MP Newcastle, NSW Mr Chris Crewther MP Dunkley, VIC Mr Michael Danby MP (from 12.2.18) Melbourne Ports, VIC The Hon Damian Drum MP (from 13.8.18) Murray, VIC vii viii Senator Mehreen Faruqi (from 14.9.18) AG, NSW Senator the Hon Fierravanti-Wells (from 10.9.18) LP, NSW Senator Alex Gallacher ALP, SA Mr Craig Kelly MP Hughes, NSW Senator Kimberley Kitching (from 15.2.18) ALP, VIC Mr Andrew Laming MP (from 6.2.18) Bowman, QLD Senator Malarndirri McCarthy (from 10.8.17) ALP, NT Senator Jim Molan AO DSC (from 5.2.18) LP, NSW Senator Claire Moore ALP, QLD Mr Ted O'Brien MP (from 15.8.17) Fairfax, QLD Mr Graham Perrett MP Moreton, QLD Mr Rowan Ramsey MP Grey, SA Senator the Hon Lisa Singh ALP, TAS Senator Dean Smith (from 22.6.17) (Chair from 16.10.18 to
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