Belinda Neal (Robertson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak in favour of the motion proposed by the member for Bonner. The motion outlines the progress the Rudd government has made towards the millennium development goals. There are two MDGs of special interest in this motion. Millennium development goal 4 aims to reduce mortality rates for children under five by two thirds by 2015. Millennium development goal 5 relates to reducing the maternal mortality rate by three-quarters by the same year. The motion quite correctly notes that there is more work to be done in millennium development goals across the world in both child and maternal health.

I, too, applaud the government’s increased commitment to foreign aid. In his speech at the London School of Economics in April 2008, Prime Minister Rudd supported the goal of accelerated progress towards the MDGs. He made a special mention of the government’s goal reducing maternal mortality. In 2008, a woman died in childbirth at a rate of one every minute, which is a truly startling figure. We know that each year 500,000 women die from pregnancy related complications that are largely preventable or treatable. An estimated 90 per cent of newborns whose mother has died will also die within their first year. The World Bank predicts that between 2009 and 2015, infant deaths in developing countries may increase on average between 200,000 and 400,000 per year due to the global recession.

This government is determined to build its role as a development leader among the world community through an increased overseas development aid budget. In the 2009-10 budget, the government committed to increasing overseas development aid so that it reached the target of 0.5 per cent of gross domestic product by 2015. This goal was praised by the OECD and I am sure it is praised by many people in our community. Australia is currently on track to achieve this goal. The government does still retain an objective of 0.7 per cent of GDP, but this is an aspirational goal.

In the 2009-10 financial year Australia provided an estimated $3.8 billion in overseas aid. Rather than being charity, the government views this continued overseas development aid as an investment in our broader community. This investment helps fight the entrenched poverty that could challenge global peace and security. Most of Australia’s aid is targeted at the Asia-Pacific region, which is clearly in our backyard, where an estimated 950 million people live on less than $1 per day. In Southeast Asia 200,000 mothers and 3.2 million children are dying each year from preventable causes. Expansion of aid allocations are planned for Southeast Asia and Africa.

Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 are a vital part of the government’s aid agenda and spending aid for maternal newborn child health has increased as part of overall increases in overseas development aid. The government believes that the MDGs relating to maternal and child health are achievable but that increased effort and greater cooperation among developing and developed nations is needed.

The motion before us today states:

Australia still requires an increase in total health funding in the foreign aid budget to progress toward the Millennium Development Goals … 4 and 5 …

The reduction of child mortality by two-thirds and the reduction of maternal mortality by three-quarters are goals that I support and I commend the member for Bonner for raising these vital matters in the parliament. These two MDGs are the slowest of all the Millennium Development Goals, as far as progress being achieved in 2015 is concerned. I urge all members to do everything practical to help with these goals, to avoid trivial political points and to really work together as a parliament to assist those in need in our world community.

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