The Australian Government’s parliamentary secretary for International Development Assistance, Bob McMullan, MP, visited recently the office of the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Australia as part of his engagement with non-government development organisations.

Mr McMullan spent an hour with ADRA Australia staff and board members, discussing issues relevant to international aid. "I’m here to listen and respond to the issues that agencies want to raise," Mr McMullan told staff. "The Australian government is now making decisions about what its international aid program will look like in five years, so this is an important dialogue. There is no better time for aid agencies to raise and discuss issues with us."

Mr McMullan explained the government’s immediate focus on three key areas of international aid, before answering questions from staff and board members. The three areas of particular interest to the Australian government are a review of its relationships with non-government organisations (NGOs), a commitment to increasing the federal aid budget from 0.3 per cent of gross national income to 0.5 per cent by 2015, and an increase in community engagement in international aid issues. The increase in the government’s international aid budget may also see an increase in funding to non-government agencies, such as ADRA Australia. "Although we haven’t formally decided to, we are looking at giving more funding to NGOs," said Mr McMullan. The Australian government currently gives 4 per cent of its aid budget to Australian-based NGOs.

The Australian Government's overseas aid program (AusAID)-funded Church Partnership Program (CPP) in Papua New Guinea (PNG), which partners with seven Christian denominations including the Adventist Church to deliver health and education services to communities in need, was also discussed. "We acknowledge that a lot of service provision happens through churches," said Mr McMullan. "The CPP in PNG has been very successful by all accounts. We’re interested in seeing if this model can be replicated." ADRA Australia partners with ADRA PNG and the Papua New Guinea Union Mission as part of this project.

Link: www.adra.org.au