Australia's Aid Budget: Promoting Growth and Stability in the Asia Pacific Region

MEDIA RELEASE

Released By:
Downer

I am pleased to announce that Australia will provide $1.815 billion as
official development assistance (ODA) in 2002-03, an increase of $90 million
over the 2001-02 budget figure ($1.725 billion) and a real increase of 3 per
cent. This is an ODA/GNI ratio of 0.25 per cent, placing Australia consistently
above the donor average which in the latest year available (2001) was 0.22 per cent.

The Australian aid programme will continue to advance our national interest
by assisting de-veloping countries to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable
development. In 2002-03, Australia's aid programme will retain its strong focus
on the Asia-Pacific region where it makes an important contribution to regional
peace and stability as well as to poverty reduction. By promoting economic
growth and good governance, the aid programme will assist in combating poverty
in our region and ensure effective delivery of aid through encouraging
in-stitutions which are transparent and accountable.

AID BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS

• Our strong continuing commitment to the nations of the Pacific is
  demonstrated by an increase in total aid flows to $165 million.
  • Australia's aid to the Solomon Islands will rise to $36.2 million to
    help deal with the country's serious economic, social and law and order
    problems
  • A full bilateral aid programme to Fiji will be resumed with total aid
    expected to reach $19.7 million. The programme will promote stability,
    through strengthening basic services and increasing confidence in the law and
    justice sector
  • Aid to Vanuatu will increase to $22.1 million. The programme will
    support the Vanuatu Government's efforts to address the risks to prosperity
    and stability including through strengthening the police and judicial
    sector
• Substantial bilateral support to Papua New Guinea of $300 million will
  continue to be provided to help sustain the momentum for reform
• As part of Australia's continuing commitment to East Timor's nation
  building in its first year of independence, aid programme funding of
  $36 million will be provided
• Australia's aid commitment to Indonesia will be maintained with total
  funding of $121.6 million. The programme will assist Indonesia to
  implement its reform agenda including through assistance aimed at improving
  economic and financial management and decentralised planning and service
  delivery
• The bilateral programme in Burma will increase to bring total aid flows to
  $6.2 million. The programme will focus initially on improving basic
  health services, given the humanitarian crisis that is engulfing the
  country
• As part of the $200 million, six-year HIV/AIDS programme announced in
  June 2000, approximately $38.5 million worth of bilateral and
  regional HIV/AIDS activities will be supported in 2002-03
• A special $15 million international refugee allocation will be
  available to support programmes of international agencies to assist refugees
  and internally displaced people
• To strengthen the aid programme's capacity to alleviate the human impact
  of conflict, natural disasters and economic and political crises in our
  region, funding for emergencies will increase by $15 million to
  $52.4 million. This is provided in addition to the $49 million
  allocated for humanitarian programmes in 2002-03
• Further funding will be provided in continued support for the
  reconstruction of Afghanistan
• Australia's aid commitment to the Middle East is expected to be
  $11.9 million.

OTHER FEATURES

To enable developing countries to meet the challenge of globalisation,
through strengthening their capacity to participate in global and regional
trading arrangements and take advantage of new trade opportunities, aid
programme funding for direct trade-related assistance will increase to nearly
$25 million.

In 2002-03, the second year of the Virtual Colombo Plan, a $200 million,
five-year initiative between the World Bank and the Australian Government,
Australia will provide $31 million to promote access to education and
information in developing countries.

Australia has made an additional commitment of $18 million over three years
to support debt relief in the poorest countries through the World Bank's Heavily
Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. This brings Australia's total support
for HIPC to $77 million.

Funding for volunteers, including the Youth Ambassadors for Development
Scheme, Austra-lian Volunteers International and AESOP Business Volunteers, will
increase by $1.9 million to reach a total of $20.5 million, the
highest level achieved.

Media inquiries:

Chris Kenny (Ministerial) 02 6277 7500

Jo Elsom
(AusAID) 02 6206 4960