Departmental overview
Machinery of government changes 2013–2014
Following the federal election on 7 September 2013 and the issuing of Administrative Arrangements Orders (AAO) on 18 September 2013, and subsequent amendment to the AAO on 3 October 2013, the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) was abolished and responsibility for international development was transferred to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) from 1 November 2013.
As a result of the 18 September 2013 AAO, the Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio assumed responsibility for international climate change negotiations. The departmental functions and resources were transferred from the former Department of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research and Tertiary Education to DFAT on 5 December 2013.
As a result of the AAO and subsequent 3 October amendment, responsibility for tourism was transferred from the former Resources, Energy and Tourism portfolio to the Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio. The Tourism Division of the former Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism was transferred to the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade). In the first quarter of 2014, DFAT assumed some additional responsibilities relating to international tourism policy and engagement.
Integration
Following machinery of government changes and the integration of AusAID into the department, from 1 November 2013 all former AusAID staff—1724 Australian Public Service employees and 651 locally engaged staff—became departmental employees.
The Secretary led a process which achieved a final integrated structure on 1 July 2014. The department has a unified corporate structure (see Organisational structure), a single budget from 2014–15, and integrated human resources, property services, and financial policies and systems.
Aid policy and program management responsibilities rest with geographic, multilateral and economic diplomacy and trade divisions. Aid management capabilities and development expertise have been retained in a central divisional group which is responsible for the integrity and quality of the aid management system, providing policy and technical advice across the department, and for humanitarian policies, programs and response capabilities.
Australian missions that manage aid programs and development partnerships are integrated. Heads of mission now have a direct leadership role and authority for the delivery of the aid program and for managing the development relationships with the countries and institutions to which they are accredited.
Progress is being made towards a common ICT platform.
Integration will be a work in progress for some time, with the executive particularly focused on building a unified organisational culture in which all staff have a shared commitment to advancing Australia’s foreign policy, trade and development interests with a high degree of professionalism, integrity and innovation.
Organisational structure
The Secretary and five Deputy Secretaries constitute the department’s executive. Immediately following the abolition of the former AusAID and integration of the aid program into DFAT on 1 November 2013, the department had—for a period of time—seven deputy secretaries before the executive structure was finalised at five deputy secretary positions. With the support of the department’s senior executive service, the executive manages and provides leadership on foreign, trade and investment, and development policy and programs, as well as on consular and corporate issues, in Canberra and overseas. The executive promotes policy cohesion across Australia’s diverse international policy interests, oversights the governance of the organisation, and shapes the values and culture of the department.
The department’s integrated organisational structure is outlined in Figure 2.
The department also manages an overseas network of 95 embassies, high commissions, consulates-general and multilateral missions (see Appendix 14, table 40). Each overseas post is attached to a parent division in Canberra. The department maintains offices in all Australian state and territory capital cities. These offices provide consular and passport services to the Australian community and liaison services to state and territory governments and Australian business. We also maintain a Passport Office in Newcastle and a Liaison Office on Thursday Island in the Torres Strait.
The department also engages people overseas to act as honorary consuls. Honorary consuls provide consular assistance on behalf of the department to Australian travellers in locations where the Australian Government does not maintain other representation (see Appendix 14, table 42).
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Secretary and Deputy Secretaries of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (as at 30 June 2014). Left to right: (seated) Deputy Secretary Chris Moraitis PSM, Secretary Peter Varghese AO, Deputy Secretary Jan Adams PSM; (standing) Deputy Secretaries Paul Grigson, Gillian Bird PSM and Ewen McDonald. [DFAT/Nathan Fulton]
Figure 2: Organisational structure (as at 30 June 2014)
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Secretary Peter Varghese AO Executive Branch (EXB) Assistant Secretary - Jeff Roach Internal Audit Branch (AUB) Chief Auditor - Simon Kidman Deputy Secretary Chris Moraitis PSM Corporate Management Division (CMD) First Assistant Secretary John Fisher Chief Finance Officer Paul Wood Information Management and Technology Division (IMD) Chief Information Officer Tuan Dao Legal Division (LGD) Senior Legal Adviser Katrina Cooper Multilateral Policy Division (MPD) First Assistant Secretary Harinder Sidhu Australian Passport Office (APO) Executive Director Bob Nash Overseas Property Office and Services (OPO) Executive Director Kevin Nixon Deputy Secretary Jan Adams PSM Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN) First Assistant Secretary Chris De Cure Trade and Economic Diplomacy Division (TED) First Assistant Secretary APEC Ambassador Sam Gerovich G20 Special Representative Daniel Sloper Free Trade Agreement Division (FTD) First Assistant Secretary Graham Fletcher Special Negotiator Michael Mugliston PSM Policy Planning Branch (PLB) Assistant Secretary Margaret Twomey Deputy Secretary Paul Grigson Americas Division (AMD) First Assistant Secretary Brendon Hammer Europe Division (EUD) First Assistant Secretary Jeremy Newman Pacific Division (PAD) First Assistant Secretary Kathy Klugman International Security Division (ISD) First Assistant Secretary Peter Tesch Middle East and Africa Division (MAD) A/g First Assistant Secretary Marc Innes-Brown PSM South and West Asia Division (SWD) First Assistant Secretary Paul Robilliard Protocol Branch (PRB) Chief of Protocol Sally Mansfield Deputy Secretary Gillian Bird PSM South East Asia Maritime Division (SED) First Assistant Secretary Allaster Cox South East Asia Mainland and Regional Division (SRD) A/g First Assistant Secretary Craig Maclachlan North Asia Division (NAD) First Assistant Secretary Peter Rowe Consular and Crisis Management Division (CCD) First Assistant Secretary Justin Brown Public Diplomacy and Communications Division (PCD) First Assistant Secretary Rob Tranter International Security Division (ISD) First Assistant Secretary Peter Tesch Australian Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office (ASNO) Director General Robert Floyd New Colombo Plan Secretariat Branch (NCB) Assistant Secretary Kate Duff Deputy Secretary Ewen McDonald Development Policy Division (DPD) First Assistant Secretary Blair Exell Contracting and Aid Management Division (ACD) First Assistant Secretary Scott Dawson Multilateral Development and Partnerships Division (MDD) First Assistant Secretary Clare Walsh Humanitarian Division (HMD) First Assistant Secretary Laurie Dunn Office of Development Effectiveness (ODE) Assistant Secretary Dereck Rooken-Smith Chief Economist (Development) Michael Carnahan
Figure 3: Outcomes and programs structure, 2013-14
Outcomes and programs structure, 2013–14 Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Secretary: Peter Varghese AO Outcome 1* The advancement of Australia's international strategic, security and economic interests including through bilateral, regional and multilateral engagement on Australian Government foreign, trade and international development policy priorities Program 1.1 Foreign affairs and trade operations Program 1.2 Payments to international organisations Program 1.3 Public information services and public diplomacy Program 1.4 International climate change engagement Program 1.5 New Colombo Plan – transforming regional relationships Program 1.6 Official Development Assistance – PNG and Pacific Program 1.7 Official Development Assistance – East Asia Program 1.8 Official Development Assistance – East Asia AIPRD Program 1.9 Official Development Assistance – Africa, South and Central Asia, Middle East and other Program 1.10 Official Development Assistance – emergency, humanitarian and refugee program Program 1.11 Official Development Assistance – multilateral replenishments Program 1.12 Official Development Assistance – UN, Commonwealth and other international organisations Program 1.13 Official Development Assistance – NGO, volunteer and community programs Program 1.14 Programs to promote Australia's tourism interests Departmental Program Support Outcome 1 Outcome 2 The protection and welfare of Australians abroad and access to secure international travel documentation through timely and responsive travel advice and consular and passport services in Australia and overseas Program 2.1 Consular services Program 2.2 Passport services Outcome 3 A secure Australian Government presence overseas through the provision of security services and information and communications technology infrastructure, and the management of the Commonwealth's overseas owned estate Program 3.1 Security and ICT Program 3.2 Overseas property
* As amended by the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statement 2013–14 and the Portfolio Supplementary Additional Estimates Statements 2013–14
