Submission to Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade: Inquiry into the strategic effectiveness and outcomes of Australia’s aid program in the Indo-Pacific and its role in supporting our regional interests.

Abstract

I welcome the opportunity to make a submission to the Join Standing Committee’s review of Australia’s aid program. Over the past five years, through successive budget cuts, a hasty merger of AusAID into DFAT, and a consequent attrition of development professionals, the aid program has been left under considerable strain. Despite the best efforts of both diplomatic and development professionals a merger of cultures, objectives, personnel and resources of this magnitude has been very disruptive. To improve the strategic and development effectiveness of Australian aid more reasoned and well measured reforms are necessary.