Program 1.12: ODA UN, Commonwealth and other international organisations
| Objective |
|---|
To assist developing countries through contributions to the United Nations, Commonwealth and other international organisations. |
| Deliverable | 2013–14 result | Reporting |
|---|---|---|
To assist developing countries through contributions to the United Nations, Commonwealth and other international organisations. |
met | below |
| Key performance indicators | 2013–14 result | Reporting |
|---|---|---|
Achievement of significant development results.* |
met | below & App. 5 |
Demonstrated organisational effectiveness.* |
met | below & App. 5 |
* Program 1.12 KPIs were revised over the course of the 2013–14 reporting period. In the Portfolio Budget Statements 2013–2014, the KPIs of then AusAID program 1.6 included a reference to tier 2 and tier 3 headline results under the Comprehensive Aid Policy Framework (CAPF). The Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2013–2014 subsequently indicated that a revised set of KPIs for the Australian Aid Program was under development. Revised performance information was published in the Portfolio Budget Statements 2014–2015. A new aid policy and performance framework was launched on 18 June (see Aid overview). In line with the Requirements for Annual Reports, the department has reported against the former and current performance information for the entirety of the reporting period. Aggregate reporting of performance over the year against tier 2 and tier 3 CAPF headline results is at App. 5.
Overview
The department supported the United Nations, Commonwealth and other international organisations to promote sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction.
UN agencies
The department’s official development assistance delivered through UN agencies totalled approximately $601.2 million in 2013–14. Our funding contributed to a reduction in poverty by increasing access to maternal and child health services, safe water, sanitation facilities and primary education.
UN agency funding
The department provided an estimated $94.4 million to the UN Development Programme (UNDP), including $20.7 million in core funding. This funding helped UNDP, among other things, create 6.47 million jobs, over half for women, in 109 countries; provide enhanced social protection in 72 countries; deliver life-saving anti-retroviral treatment for HIV/AIDS to one in seven of all people receiving treatment worldwide; assist electoral work in 68 countries, including registering 3.4 million new voters in Afghanistan, 34.5 per cent of them women; improve access to justice and legal aid, particularly for women, in 117 countries; and assist 36 countries fulfil their international human rights commitments.
We worked closely with the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), providing $34.1 million in core funding through a partnership framework and an estimated $109.2 million overall. This funding helped UNICEF to deliver therapeutic feeding programs to 2.4 million children with acute malnutrition; vaccinate 35.9 million children for measles; provide 24.3 million people with access to safe water; provide access to HIV prevention, care and treatment for 1.6 million pregnant women; help 7.4 million people access appropriately designed toilets; and provide access to safe community spaces, learning spaces and psychological support for 2.5 million children in emergency situations. As a result of our advocacy, both UNDP and UNICEF adopted improved processes for reporting on results under their strategic plans.
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Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva, Peter Woolcott (right), LES Health Adviser, Timothy Poletti (centre), and Youth Representative, James Gray, attend the 33rd UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board meeting, Geneva, 17–19 December 2013. [Jenny Da Rin]
The department continued its support for the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women). We provided $8 million in core funding and over $10 million in non-core funding to UN Women. We used our position on the UN Women Board, including as Vice President in 2014, to highlight the experience of women in the Pacific and the importance of tackling violence against women.
We provided $7.2 million to the UN Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS), comprising a core contribution of $3.6 million and an additional $3.6 million allocated for the Asia–Pacific region. This funding facilitated better international coordination of the global response to HIV/AIDS by providing technical assistance to countries on strategic investment cases, guidance on targeting key populations and management of regional civil society networks. As chair of the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board in 2014, we focused on raising awareness of the needs of countries with higher disease burdens in the Indo–Pacific.
Staff Profile
Andrew Thackrah
Executive Officer, International Organisations Branch, Canberra
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I started working at the former AusAID in December 2012. Initially, I was in the Bilateral Partnerships Team that worked to promote links between the Australia and other major aid donors, such as the United Kingdom and the United States. I enjoyed learning about the development programs of our partners and gained a lot from the experience and sense of humour of my colleagues. At AusAID I was also part of a taskforce that help arrange two major international Mining for Development Conferences.
After the integration of the aid program with DFAT, I became a member of the department’s UN Economic and Development Team. My current role is to manage Australia’s relationship with UNICEF. Recently, I represented Australia at UNICEF’s Executive Board in New York and organised a visit to Australia by the fund’s deputy head. These events presented opportunities to enhance Australia’s partnership with UNICEF, particularly in the Indo–Pacific region.
Since joining the department, I have learnt a lot from colleagues who have diverse experiences in both foreign and trade policy. I have also enjoyed the experience of being a union representative involved in negotiating the department’s new Enterprise Agreement.
The department provided $15 million in core funding to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) to improve reproductive health, family planning and gender equality; implement the International Conference on Population and Development Programme of Action in the Indo–Pacific region; and contribute to the international post–2015 development agenda. Our four-year, $12 million commitment to the UN Peacebuilding Fund complemented Australia’s advocacy of inclusive approaches to peacebuilding.
Commonwealth organisations
The department provided approximately $11.9 million in assistance to the Commonwealth Foundation, the Commonwealth Youth Programme, the Commonwealth of Learning and the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation. We supported the Commonwealth People’s Forum in Sri Lanka in November 2013 to engage civil society with Commonwealth leaders on global development issues.
Our support for the Commonwealth of Learning contributed to the Lifelong Learning for Farmers initiative, which strengthened livelihoods and empowered 177,000 farmers, 65 per cent of whom were women, in poorer sections of rural societies throughout the Commonwealth. Through the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation we enabled election observers to participate in 13 elections in Commonwealth countries, including Sierra Leone and Pakistan. A Commonwealth financial literacy program in Vanuatu reached in excess of 4000 rural villagers, with over 3000 new accounts opened.
International education programs
The department contributed $70 million to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) to improve access to and the quality of education for children in developing countries. Our advocacy at the Board level resulted in GPE approving a regional grant to the Pacific of $8.5 million in 2013, which will benefit Papua New Guinea and Tonga.
We contributed $2.6 million to foster innovation in teaching reading in the early school years through a partnership with USAID and World Vision under the All Children Reading Grand Challenge for Development. We also supported the UNESCO Institute for Statistics to improve assessment and tracking of education quality. Funding for the World Bank’s Systems Approach to Better Education Results program helped initiate 48 new assessments of policy constraints limiting the performance of developing countries’ education systems.
International health programs
Since 2004, we have provided $410 million to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund). Our $100 million contribution in 2013–14, helped provide antiretroviral therapy for 36,000 people with HIV/AIDS, treat 30,000 people with tuberculosis, and distribute one million insecticide treated bed nets to prevent malaria. Our investment leveraged greater resources to the region, with the Global Fund investing more than ten times the amount contributed by Australia to the fund in the Indo–Pacific region.
In 2013–14, the department contributed $52.5 million to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), supporting the immunisation of 1,536,000 children in developing countries. We also contributed $4.9 million to the International Finance Facility for Immunisation to raise funds for vaccines. We used our membership of the GAVI Board to increase GAVI’s engagement and investment in our region.
We provided $20 million in voluntary core funding to the World Health Organization (WHO) to support its General Programme of Work 2014–19. The department supported country and regional priorities and specific health issues, including the health emergency response in Syria and the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and Endgame Strategic Plan 2013–2018, to which we contributed $15 million.
Other funding investments in the health sector included: $2.95 million to the UNFPA Global Programme to Enhance Reproductive Health Commodity Security; $2 million core funding for the International Planned Parenthood Federation and a further $2 million to support its work improving access to sexual and reproductive health services in South Asia. Our contribution helped to improve access to family planning and reproductive health in our region.
International sustainable development programs
The department committed $93 million to support the Global Environment Facility’s (GEF) sixth replenishment and influenced the strategic direction of its policies and programs, including increased allocations to the Indo–Pacific region and enhanced private sector engagement. We worked with the GEF to address environmental problems such as biodiversity loss, land degradation and cross-border water issues.
We used our position on the Green Climate Fund Board to direct focus in three areas: engagement with the private sector, including through new financial instruments and platforms that target institutional investors; involvement in the Indo–Pacific, especially through support for small island developing states; and integration of gender considerations. The selection of the Republic of Korea as host of the fund, with our support, was an important outcome for the Indo–Pacific.
Global development
The department contributed to the global development effectiveness agenda, working with both traditional and new donors on transparency, private sector partnerships, strengthening domestic resource mobilisation and improving results. We supported the Foreign Minister’s participation at the first High-Level Meeting of the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation in April 2014 where she placed a strong focus on promoting the role of taxation in development and the G20’s work in this area.
Outlook
The department will provide $140 million for GPE’s new four-year replenishment period (2015–18). We will also contribute $200 million to the Global Fund over 2014–16 and commit a further $100 million over five years to support polio eradication and routine immunisations.
The department will continue to engage in negotiations on the post–2015 global development agenda with a specific focus on economic growth, gender equality and women’s economic empowerment, peace and governance. This process will culminate in the UN General Assembly Leaders’ Summit in September 2015.
Contributing to the shape of the future development finance architecture will be a priority. We will focus on the catalytic role of official development assistance and promote the importance of mobilising and effectively spending all sources of finance—including from the private sector.
