Published in The Age on Thursday 11 December 2014
By Tim Costello, World Vision Australia chief executive and Brian Doolan, The Fred Hollow Foundation chief executive
There are some things we as a nation want to stop from happening. The continued spread of Ebola, which is delivering a dividend of misery across West Africa, and may eventually reach our shores, is one of them. The suffering of millions of people in Syria and neighbouring countries is another.
In contrast, there are some things that should not be stopped; rather they should be enabled and supported. In the latter category are the efforts of Australians to apply their training, experience and practical skills to meet complex challenges such as Ebola, preventable blindness in developing countries, and deadly conflict.
These global complexities may be inconvenient to some, but they won't go away and they require Australian leadership. But it seems some of our most senior policymakers have their heads firmly in the sand, and are even contemplating further cuts to Australia's already battered aid program.
The truth is that we are a wealthy nation that can and should be giving more. Our relative standing in the world – as the fourth wealthiest country in the OECD per capita - means we can contribute more.
If a country like Australia won't lead, who will? This isn't just because of Australia's wealth and our resourcefulness, but also because of who we are and the values we hold. In good times and bad, Australians have always put their hands up. We are willing to reach out, and we have long preferred openness over isolation in international affairs. Australians empathise with others who aspire to the things we enjoy, be that justice and democracy or simply a fair crack at a decent life.
Australians want to help others – we give to international aid organisations very generously. Our government can and does harness this generosity and supercharge it. And our national record of partnering on a global level to build stronger economies through an effective aid program is something of which all Australians can be proud.
Business, government and NGOs are actually quite good at meeting complex challenges together. The benefits of these partnerships flow to individuals, to households, to villages, communities, regions and nations. Over the past 12 months, the Australian government has unveiled a so-called "new paradigm" for aid, with a stronger focus on enabling trade, and building self-reliance through better targeting and monitoring of aid funds. Australia's highly-skilled aid and development agencies have made it clear to the government that we have no argument with a focus on effectiveness and rigorous monitoring and evaluation – these concepts are our stock-in-trade.
We – The Fred Hollows Foundation and World Vision Australia – stand behind the effectiveness of our work – which is why we want to see it supported and scaled up.
But aid budget cuts have come so quickly and so often – that the very effectiveness of Australian aid is being undermined, as the scope and reach of the program are attacked.
Predictability is a key aspect of aid effectiveness – constant chopping and changing makes it very hard for countries to plan and use aid. Partner countries can't commit to recruit and train teachers and health staff, or build a road or bridge to enable farmers to transport their produce to a wider market, unless they know that we are going to contribute our share of the agreed costs.
Another potential round of cuts to Australian aid represents nothing more than a lazy approach to fiscal challenges. The government must look at the nation's budget as a whole when it makes tough but responsible decisions on reforms to underpin Australia's future prosperity – not holding out the threat of hurting vulnerable people to ensure budget savings gain parliamentary support.
It is a perverse situation that we, as a nation, are retreating from engagement and assistance at a time of grave humanitarian need. The refugee burden is as great now as in the immediate aftermath of World War II – and last week the World Food Program was forced to temporarily suspend operations supporting Syrian refugees just as winter hit.
Whether driven by conflict or natural disaster, the current humanitarian burden is high, and Australia is not immune from the flow-on effects. Likewise we are not exempt from working alongside other nations, international agencies and our colleagues in the aid and development sector to help meet these great needs, always with an eye to building up the longer-term resilience of poorer states and those shattered by conflict.
As a result of wealthy nations' inability to contribute proportionately to these crises, the burden is falling on less wealthy nations. That is hardly fair.
Many nations – ours included – are also not providing a fair share of funding to ensure people who have vision problems have access to treatment, or more kids can go to school, or to a raft of other issues. Partnering in these areas sows the seeds for future economic and disaster resilience. Support to move along the development continuum has seen and will continue to see nations able to move from recipient to donor status.
By again cutting into what is a small proportion of the total federal budget, the government is making an active choice to retreat from complex global challenges. And to withdraw our support for work which builds capacity and capability in the very societies we are trading with, fighting alongside in far-away conflicts, and whom we have myriad relationships with.
Australian NGOs have the skills and networks to do much more. Higher levels of support from government can make much better use of that potential.