Australia’s Aid to and Presence in Africa

Gary Johns7 November 2011

Australian Government ,2011. An Effective Aid Program for Australia: Making a real difference—Delivering real results

Where Australia will provide aid. Government response to review:

• Asia–Pacific region, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and East Timor, will remain the primary focus

• Decisions on country allocations will be based on the following criteria. o Poverty —countries and regions where there are large numbers of people living in poverty o Effectiveness and capacity for Australian aid to make a real difference o National interest— interests beyond immediate region remain subordinate to those of neighbours

• ‘At the same time, we will implement the Independent Review’s recommendation to increase aid to South

Asia and Africa — ... we cannot pretend to be tackling global poverty without increasing our investment in the world’s two most impoverished regions.’

• Why not?

Out of Africa

• Poor people, wherever they live, are equally deserving of aid

• Australia does not have enough money to help all poor people

• There are many poor in Asia and the Pacific

‘Global poverty’ and operating through ‘multilateral agencies’ subsumes Australia’s assessment of where aid is most needed, most effective, and in our best interests

• Aid to Africa cannot be justified unless ‘effectiveness’ out rates any other aid, to such an extent it outweighs our interests.

• It will be very difficult to prove the ‘African test’ because evaluations are inadequate.

• Aid to Africa 11 per cent of the total Australian aid program – about $320 m per year by 2014-5.

Much to do in East Asia and Pacific

Malaysia 2009

Mongolia 2008

Thailand 2009

Vietnam 2008

China 2005

Indonesia 2009

Philippines 2006

Cambodia 2007

Lao PDR 2008

Timor-Leste 2007

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

Poverty Headcount Rate at International Poverty Lines

$2 a day (PPP) $1.25 a day (PPP)

% of population below the poverty lineSource: WDI 2011Latest available year after 2005

Much to do in South Asia

Sri Lanka 2007

Pakistan 2006

India 2005

Bangladesh 2005

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

Poverty Headcount Rate at International Poverty Lines

$2 a day (PPP) $1.25 a day (PPP)

% of population below the poverty lineSource: WDI 2011Latest available year after 2005

Australia is a minor donor in Africa

Source: OECD 2011. Development Aid at A Glance , Statistics By Region 2. Africa 2011 edition , page 4.

Small beer ...

Australia is not a former colonial power in Africa

European colonial powers 1913

German Spanish French British Italian Portuguese Independ

Were never there ...

Africa of interest to few Australian tourists

Source: : Tourism Research Australia 2011. Travel by Australians June 2011 Quarterly Results of the National Visitor Survey , page 26.

Not interested ...

Australian trade

Source: Direction Of Trade Time Series 2000-01 One Hundred Years of Trade Market Information and Analysis Unit Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade February 2002

No trade ...

Australian exports

Source: DFAT. Australia’s trade performance1 1988-89 to 2008-09 , page 5.

Asia focused

Defence

3500 Australian Defence Force personnel are deployed on operations overseas.

Current operational deployments include:• Iraq• East Timor• Afghanistan• Solomon Islands No show ...

Security350 Australian Federal police International and domestic deployments International Deployments • Afghanistan • Cambodia • Solomon Islands (RAMSI) • Timor-Leste • Vanuatu United Nations Missions • New York • Cyprus • Timor-Leste • Sudan Pacific Police Development Program • Nauru • Papua New Guinea • Samoa • Tonga

Almost no show ...

Aid effectiveness

The aid program is fragmented. Australia has aid programs in 88 countries, compared to 69 countries five years ago. The number of projects has doubled

• Absence of a single, easily comprehensible scorecard on the effectiveness of the

Australian aid program as a whole • The system of independent evaluations is not working well and requires reform • Each country and region is rated using three criteria of the proposed overall objective of

the aid program

• For each country/regional category, ratings are used to inform recommendations about the case for expansion and sectoral spread

• Ratings are not evaluations.

Aid ineffectiveness I

Multilateralist dreaming

‘Australia will be able to use its growing aid budget to significantly increased core funding to multilateral organisations ... enhanced engagement, with greater financial support for the better performing multilateral organisations, will be the best way to leverage reform.’

• Why dilute our impact – just work with those where we have real

effect ...

Aid ineffectiveness II

Stopping child sponsorship with World Vision

• ‘What a pity, the village was about to become self-sufficient ...’

• I was sponsoring a child – the best option may have been to leave the village ...

• Would WV have called me to inform me that the village had achieved self-sufficiency?

Aid ineffectiveness III

Nauru

‘South Pacific microstates (Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu), Australian funding will be a significant feature of budgets for the indefinite future, and it is best that Australian aid planning recognise that reality. The Review Panel recommends a high expansion.’

‘We are paying people to stay and die young of diabetes.’

o There are 12,000 inhabitantso life expectancy of 45 years o There is 98 per cent unemploymento They are not poor

• Options – Australia takes over ... offers relocation to Australia ... Much cheaper, much better outcome ...

Aid ineffectiveness IV

Mining

More than 40 per cent of all Australian overseas mining projects are in Africa. Around 230 Australian companies have more than 650 projects in 43 countries and territories worth $US20 billion.

A $127 million ‘Mining for Development Initiative’ aims to help ‘resource-rich, poor countries’ better use their natural resources

• An International Mining for Development Centre will be set up at the University of Western Australia’s Energy and Mineral Institute, and will provide up to $31 million for practical advisory, education and training services to developing countries, including 1,870 training places and 24 research fellowships.

• $22 million to support NGO’s that are already active in social and environmentally sustainable activities in mining

• Oxfam Executive Director Andrew Hewett said “The speed and scale of development, scarcity of resources and high commodity prices have caused an appetite for risk, and increased business in emerging economies and weak governance zones”