Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This week is Anti-Poverty Week and the United Nations has declared this Friday, 17 October, International Anti-Poverty Day, so it is appropriate this week that so many of us rise to draw attention to the plight of nearly one billion people around the world. It is appropriate, of course, that we keep global poverty in mind every day, as nearly 10,000 children die each day from hunger and malnutrition.

This morning on the lawns of Parliament House hundreds of people from Micah Challenge, Make Poverty History and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation gathered to welcome a group of cyclists who had ridden from Brisbane to Canberra to draw attention to the plight of those living in poverty around the world. On arriving, they cycled once around Parliament House for each of the eight Millennium Development Goals—once to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; once to achieve universal primary education; once to promote gender equality and empower women; once to reduce child mortality; once to improve maternal health; once to combat HIV-AIDS, malaria and other diseases; once to ensure environmental sustainability; and finally, on the eighth time, to develop a global partnership for development.

In the words of the Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance:

The Millennium Development Goals are tangible, real indicators of success in the struggle against global poverty and inequality. It is impossible to be committed to a world where children grow up free from the scourge of poverty, illiteracy and disease without accepting that the Millennium Development Goals are the medium-term goals for which we should aim.

We are at the halfway point and there have been some key successes. For example, in all but two regions primary school enrolment is at least 90 per cent. The gender parity index in primary education is 95 per cent or higher in six of the 10 regions, including the most populous ones. Deaths from measles fell from over 750,000 in 2000 to 250,000 in 2006, and about 80 per cent of children in developing countries now receive a measles vaccine. Some 1.6 billion people have gained access to safe drinking water since 1990, and the share of developing countries’ export earnings devoted to servicing debt fell from 12.5 per cent in 2000 to 6.6 per cent in 2006, allowing those countries to allocate more resources to reducing poverty.

But in other areas much greater effort is required. About one-quarter of all children in developing countries are considered to be underweight and are at risk of having a future blighted by the long-term effects of undernourishment. Of the 113 countries that failed to achieve gender parity in both primary and secondary school enrolment by the target date of 2005, only 18 likely to achieve that goal by 2015. More than 500,000 prospective mothers in developing countries die in childbirth or as a result of complications in pregnancy. Some 2.5 billion people, almost half the developing world’s population, live without improved sanitation. Developed countries’ foreign aid expenditures declined for the second consecutive year in 2007 and risk falling short of the commitment made in 2005.

The last time Australia achieved the interim target levels of 0.5 per cent of GNI was way back under the Whitlam government in 1974-75. The figure has steadily declined since, reaching an all-time low under the previous government of 0.25 per cent of GNI between 1999 and 2004. In 2007, the Australian government ranked 13th out of 21 developed OECD donor countries in per capita aid. In contrast, as private individuals we ranked second in private donations to non-government organisations, demonstrating what a generous community we are.

The Rudd government made an election commitment to meet the 0.5 per cent of GNI target by 2015. The 2008-09 budget contained a projected nine per cent real increase over the 2007-08 budget figure, bringing the total in the 2008-09 year to $3.7 billion, or 0.32 per cent of GNI, and that lays the foundation for filling our election commitment. There was also a post-budget announcement by the Prime Minister on 13 June for a four-year $49 million maternal and neonatal health program for eastern Indonesia to make pregnancy and childbirth safer for women in Indonesia’s poorest area. These are small, positive steps to re-establish Australia as part of the global community working to halve poverty by 2015. In the words of Ban Ki-moon, the UN Secretary-General:

We must act now and together, responsibly, as one world community, for one shared humanity.

(Time expired)

Luke Simpkins (Cowan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This motion is about poverty. As we know, this is Anti-Poverty Week and Friday is International Anti-Poverty Day, as declared by the United Nations. The aiming mark for foreign aid is to be increased to 0.5 per cent of gross national income, and I note that the government has committed to achieving that mark by 2015. It is appropriate to note that increases in Australian foreign aid have been made over many years in real terms. However, when we think of the keen focus on a mark of 0.5 per cent, we should be very careful that this does not become our only focus. Should we reach that mark, it should not be ‘game over, tick the box or mission accomplished’. Even though the Rudd government has said it will take six years to reach the mark, it is critical that we focus on making sure foreign aid targets the capacity to ensure self-sufficiency. Yes, stopping people starving right now is very important, but aid designed to develop agriculture and water projects is where the long-term focus, the goal, must be. Critically important also is the need for governance and strong systems in the countries receiving aid. Take a look at any country where the government is corrupt and where resources are diverted from the people to a ruling elite and you find the greatest hallmarks of poverty. The need for an effective or progressing democracy should be linked firmly as a prerequisite to our aid programs in order that we may have confidence that the money is going to count for the people suffering in these countries.

It is appropriate that I also make mention of poverty in Australia. In this country I know that ACOSS has defined the poverty line as 50 per cent of median disposable income, which I understand was $281 per week in 2006. That figure sounds familiar these days, because here we are in late 2008 and that is what the aged single pension and a number of other pensions round out to per week. It is my view that not all of those on $281 per week in 2008 are in poverty but they have to be very well organised to be able to afford housing, transport, food and clothing. I think a single age pensioner would have to own their own home to be able to afford to live on that amount. I would, however, like to take up the case of someone who is not even getting that much, Mrs Margaret Anne Ryan, a constituent of mine in Ballajura. Mrs Ryan is 60 years old and a recipient of the widow’s pension. Mrs Ryan sent me an email last week, which said:

Whilst I am pushing for the pension to be increased I am mainly interested in getting my benefit increased which is the “widow allowance” now that benefit is NOT a pension it is only the same as the Newstart benefit which is what you get when not working. The “widow allowance” is around about FORTY dollars a week LESS than the single aged pension and that is what I want corrected. At the present moment on the $245.90 a week I am getting, after I pay my mortgage and the other bills I am lucky if I have fifty dollars to buy food and pay for bus fares.

It is not a nice situation to be in where you only have fifty dollars to your name and face the daily prospect of not only losing the house you are in but getting all the amenities cut off.

I worry that people like Mrs Ryan are under the poverty line and cannot afford three meals a day. This is the front line in this country for those on fixed incomes who face potential poverty. Here is an older Australian who is community minded—and I can personally vouch for that—and doing the right thing in 2008, as she has always done in her life. So where is the government for all the Mrs Ryans in this country? It is hard for me to speak in favour of increased foreign aid when I know how hard she and others like her are doing it. There is of course a big contrast between Mrs Ryan and those people who tell me how tough times are whilst standing in front of their houses, with two cars, a huge wide-screen TV and a Foxtel subscription. I also make known my concern about those parents out there who might prefer drugs, alcohol or cigarettes before healthy food for their children. There is a marked difference between people in those sorts of circumstances who have adopted those sorts of lifestyle choices and someone like Mrs Ryan, who has always done the right thing and stands in a very difficult situation.

This brings me back to the main issue, and I will finish by saying that there are people suffering here and around the world. Aid should be given, either in the form of increased pensions or payments here or by foreign aid, but always with accountability.

Sharon Bird (Cunningham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This week from 12 to 18 October marks Anti-Poverty Week and the United Nations has declared Friday, 17 October as International Anti-Poverty Day. During this week we reflect on poverty in Australia and recognise that, although our country is not perfect, Australians are in many circumstances much luckier than people in other parts of the world. We are a rich country and as such we have a moral responsibility to play a role in helping developing countries establish good education and health systems, as well as stable government. In 2008-09 Australia will provide nearly $4 billion in official development assistance, ODA. Nearly $3 billion will be managed by AusAID. The ratio of Australia’s ODA to gross national income is estimated at 0.3 per cent for 2007-08. The 2008-09 budget increases the ratio to 0.32 per cent. The government expects the ratio to increase again to 0.35 per cent in 2009-10, 0.37 in 2010-11 and 0.38 in 2011-12. The government has a commitment to increase Australia’s ratio to 0.5 per cent by 2015-16.

The Asia-Pacific region remains a poor part of the world. The Asia Development Bank and the United Nations estimate that about 641 million people in this region continue to live on less than one US dollar a day. Australia has been a strong supporter of the Millennium Development Goals. These goals were adopted unanimously by the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000. The MDG are a set of global development objectives to be achieved by 2015. The MDG have eight specific objectives, including eradicating extreme poverty and hunger; achieving universal primary education; promoting gender equality and empowering women; reducing child mortality; improving maternal health; combating HIV-AIDS, malaria and other diseases; ensuring environmental sustainability; and developing a global partnership for development. The 2008-09 budget also provided assistance to faster progress towards the MDG by increasing Australia’s multilateral engagement, development financing and Australia’s core funding for key UN agencies. The budget also established new programs in infrastructure development, land administration and public sector capacity building.

I have many constituents in my electorate who have contacted me since my first election on the issue of Australia’s foreign aid. They have expressed an interest in Australia’s foreign aid program and expressed to me a desire for an increase in Australian ODA. I have been pleased to inform my constituents of the government’s commitment to increase our ODA and I am delighted to inform the chamber that there are many organisations in my electorate which also do their bit in working towards those objectives.

There are also volunteer organisations which help refugees and refugee families once they arrive in Australia to integrate into our community. I am patron of an organisation called SCARF, which is made up of volunteers. They work to provide assistance to local refugees who settle in Wollongong from the African continent. They do excellent work running homework programs for children, running learn to drive programs for adults, teaching adults how to seek work in a local area and working with local employers to increase their ability to become full citizens.

I should indicate that I am also a member of the Australian People for Health, Education and Development Abroad, APHEDA. I would like to take the opportunity to pay tribute to people in my own local area like Cathy Bloch, who is a local trade unionist I have known for a long time, an activist and a particular advocate on behalf of APHEDA. In fact, she told me that on the weekend they had a very successful fundraising dinner. I think it is a really important role that the union movement has played through its international connections through that organisation. I also acknowledged Peter Jennings, APHEDA’s executive officer, who I have dealt with on a number of occasions as well.

APHEDA was established in 1984 as the overseas agency of the Australian Council of Trade Unions. My connection to it goes back to my teaching days and I have been very pleased to be able to continue to participate in it. I particularly like the program where you can decide what particular areas you would like to focus your donations in and to do some extra work for women and children in some of the countries where they provide assistance.

Anti-Poverty Week is an important week and our electorates do their bit. It is important that the government also does its bit in meeting those goals.

Mark Coulton (Parkes, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very happy to speak on this motion relating to international poverty and Australia’s efforts to assist those in need. As we all know, this week is Anti-Poverty Week and the United Nations has declared this Friday, 17 October, International Anti-Poverty Day. As Australians, we are extremely fortunate to live in a country where extreme poverty is not a common occurrence. But as those of us who have travelled in neighbouring regions know, we do not have to go very far to find people who are living in horrific conditions.

Earlier this year I was very fortunate to be part of the Australian parliamentary delegation to Cambodia to observe Cambodia’s fourth national general elections. My visit to Cambodia really highlighted for me the level of poverty that exists within our region. During the eight days I spent in Cambodia I travelled beyond its centre, Phnom Penh, and throughout the countryside, which allowed me to gain an insight into the realities of life in an impoverished nation. As Australians we live in a country where, although poverty is not unknown, absolute poverty is a rarity. Cambodia is a country where absolute poverty lies around every corner. Whether I was walking the streets of the capital or travelling through the remote countryside, there were scenes of abject poverty which have been seared into my memory. For decades, the Cambodian people suffered at the hands of oppressive and corrupt governments—most famously under the Khmer Rouge and its brutal leader, Pol Pot. No single person in Cambodia would remain untouched by the horrors of the past. Indeed, under Pol Pot a population of eight million was reduced to five million in a matter of years. While the recent election brought with it a number of positive developments and the tide looks like it is finally turning, the repercussions of Pol Pot’s murderous regime will linger for some time yet, with perhaps the most unfortunate consequence being widespread poverty.

According to common poverty measurements, such as income and broader human development indicators, Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in the world. The statistics are alarming. For example, about one in three Cambodians live below the national poverty line of just 45c a day. It is not until you see the human toll behind the figures that the full realisation of absolute poverty becomes apparent. Added to this, the internal troubles are extrapolated by external ones. Fears over political instability and corruption have, to a large extent, deterred foreign investment in the country. Corruption is both a cause and an effect of poverty, and the historical corruption that has become almost synonymous with Cambodia’s ruling elite has been perhaps the most direct factor in the inadequate levels of health care and education, for example.

I would like to commend the excellent work carried out by AusAID across Cambodia. In the 2008-09 financial year, Australia will provide approximately $37 million to promote development, stability and prosperity in Cambodia. AusAID aims to increase the productivity and incomes of the poor, reduce vulnerability and strengthen the rule of law. There are many incredible projects operating in Cambodia, and one in particular that I enjoyed visiting was Radio National Kampuchea, which operates under AusAID’s Cambodia Radio Development Assistance Program. The radio station has set new standards for political debate in Cambodia and has introduced a talkback program to enable broadbased participation by those living in rural and remote communities. This was the first election that Cambodia has had where the population had access to such a great thing. The day we were there, we actually saw this undertaken—in very primitive conditions but it is an excellent step forward for democracy.

Improving agricultural practices is one of the goals of AusAID’s work in Cambodia. Through programs such as the Agriculture Value Chain Program, the Agriculture Quality Improvement Project, Integrated Rural Development and Water Resource Management, farmers, researchers and policymakers in Cambodia are learning practical skills which will ensure improved food security and productivity, better marketing and value-adding for products and increased income for farmers. I was able to observe some of the benefits of these programs during my visit and I was extremely impressed by the high standard of the work being undertaken.

In addition to the projects run by AusAID, there are many volunteers working for non-government organisations in Cambodia who are devoting years of their lives to helping the Cambodian people overcome the repercussions of poverty. I was very privileged to meet some of these great young Australians, and we should be very proud that they are over there giving their time—basically free of charge—to help an impoverished nation. It is a testament to the human spirit that so many people give selflessly in order to improve the lives of others. I would like to commend the excellent work done by Micah Challenge and Make Poverty History across the world. Make Poverty History, in particular, has made an invaluable contribution in the fight against global poverty by putting the issue firmly on the political and public radar.

Bernie Ripoll (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It gives me great pleasure to speak on this motion tonight. I applaud the member for Parramatta for moving this motion, in that it is Anti-Poverty Week and Friday also marks the United Nations International Anti-Poverty Day. Along with many members—I would say most members of the House—I am very proud to be part of this government’s commitment to the Millennium Development Goals. There are currently two UN targets in place. Firstly, there is an interim target of 0.5 per cent of gross national income. Secondly, there is the ideal target that we want all nations to commit to, which will see aid become 0.7 per cent of GDP over time. The sad fact is that the previous government sat idle on this issue for 12 years. Our current contribution is very low, at around 0.3 per cent, which means it is a massive leap to get to 0.5 per cent by 2015. We are committed to the 0.7 per cent, but it will take some time. In difficult economic times it can be tempting for some people to say that less should be spent on foreign aid. But the reality for the world’s poorest is that every day represents great economic hardship, at levels that we cannot even begin to understand. Foreign aid is something that should never be politicised; it is something that should be maintained and improved by governments all around the world, not just the Australian government.

The Australian government is also committed to continue increasing the aid budget beyond 2010 so that it reaches the interim Millennium Development Goals funding target of 0.5 per cent of gross national income by 2015. The recent federal budget laid the foundation for the implementation of this long-term goal. There is no need to say this, but I will say it anyway: being fiscally responsible and being very careful in the way we put together the budget gives us the opportunity to be able to meet our millennium goals and our targets while at the same time managing the economic crisis that we all face—and we will do that. Australia will provide an estimated $3.7 billion in overseas direct aid in the 2008-09 budget, increasing Australia’s aid from 0.3 per cent of GNI in 2007-08 to 0.32 per cent in 2008-09. The government expects to increase Australia’s aid to levels equivalent to 0.38 per cent of GNI in 2011-12. World Vision and others in the Make Poverty History Alliance have been extremely positive and excited about this commitment.

Of course, increased funding is only one aspect of the government’s commitment to end global poverty. Ensuring that aid funds are spent effectively on poverty reduction and making sure that we collectively achieve with other nations the maximum possible benefit is also essential. The government is committed to increasing both the quality and the quantity of the Australian aid program and retains the target ODA level of 0.7 per cent of GNI as an aspirational goal.

To this end, reforms are well underway to strengthen the effectiveness of our aid. For example, the AusAID Development Research Strategy 2008-10 provides greater transparency on the performance of the aid program to the Australian public and will encourage greater debate on the challenges facing our region. This strategy outlines the way AusAID will increase the role of research in contributing to the effectiveness of the aid program, including a whole range of things that we are doing—strengthening funding for development research, establishing stronger ties and a whole range of other really effective applications that we can put forward. In the end, by partnering with other organisations and institutions we can increase the effectiveness and the efficiency of the money that we provide in direct foreign aid.

Australians sit proudly as the second-most generous aid contributors in the world in terms of contributions to non-government organisations. We have a very strong and long history and we have seen in recent years just how generous Australians can be. I think that is at most times also reflected in the culture in the Australian government. The government is committed to ensuring that Australia once again becomes a development leader by ensuring that an increased aid budget has a genuinely positive impact on those who need it most.

I would also like to recognise and congratulate the dedicated and very enthusiastic cyclists who rode from Brisbane to Canberra as part of the Micah Challenge. Being an avid cyclist myself it was great to see such a devoted team highlighting the plight of so many millions of children around the world.

Margaret May (McPherson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Did you ride, Bernie?

Bernie Ripoll (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, I have to say that, to my great despair, I did not ride the 1,500 kilometres—although I would have loved to! But congratulations to the Make Poverty History campaign people, who do a fantastic job, and also to the Micah Challenge. Any support that we can give them is always something that is warranted. I support this motion and commend it to the House.

Margaret May (McPherson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight in support of this motion on a heartbreaking issue—namely, the unacceptable levels of poverty in the world. Personally, I have seen firsthand, during my own years working in developing countries, the impact of poverty and disease on people’s lives. I commend the member for Parramatta for bringing this motion before the House and I now understand why I saw her earlier today in the car park in her bike gear. She was obviously on her bike this morning, which is great.

This week, as previous speakers have highlighted, marks Anti-Poverty Week, and Friday, 17 October marks International Anti-Poverty Day. Our neighbours in the Asia-Pacific region, to our great shame here in Australia, have some of the highest levels of poverty in the world—poverty on a scale that we do not see here in this country. Urbanisation in this region has grown at an unparalleled pace, more than in any other region in the world, but it has come at a cost. There is no doubt that urbanisation has resulted in economic growth, and this is certainly to be applauded, but sadly it has also resulted in higher levels of poverty. According to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, two out of every five people who live in urban areas in the Asia-Pacific region reside in slums with no access to clean water. In September 2000, the international community responded to the issue of poverty by coming together at United Nations headquarters to adopt the United Nations Millennium Declaration, which commits each signatory nation to reducing extreme poverty with a series of targets to be met by 2015. As we know, this declaration has become known as the Millennium Development Goals. The goals include halving extreme poverty, halting the spread of HIV-AIDS and providing universal primary education.

In September this year, the UN Secretary General convened a high-level meeting on the Millennium Development Goals. We are now at the halfway point towards the 2015 target date and we must urgently increase our efforts if we are to meet the goals by 2015. The seeds of poverty are planted in indifference, but I am pleased that we in Australia—indeed, successive governments in Australia—have embraced the Millennium Development Goals. The goals are ambitious—there is no doubt about that—but they are also achievable as long as we, as a nation, maintain our focus, our drive and our commitment to reaching them. I believe education is the key to alleviating poverty, particularly for women.

It is lamentable that in many developing nations women are often left out of the equation. I truly believe that economic change must start with women. Along with education, one way to bring about this change and empower women is through microcredit programs. The tremendous work undertaken by AusAID in providing microcredit facilities has made it possible for many thousands of men and women in countries such as China, Sri Lanka, India, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Vietnam and Vanuatu to access loan services. Microcredit provides a facility for the poorest people in the world to take care of themselves and their families and achieve some level of independence.

As Australians, our responsibility is huge, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. Poverty breeds discontent. The eradication of poverty assists with the security of our region. Everyone on our planet, irrespective of where they live, the colour of their skin or the level of their education, should have access to fresh food, clean water, shelter and education. Last year there were food riots in 30 countries, something unheard of in this country—food riots by people who cannot access food on a daily basis. According to the World Bank, 850 million people around the world are malnourished. The hurdles to achieve success are immense. Climate change, rising food prices and rising fuel prices are only a few of the challenges we face. As such, the commitment to ending poverty should be a priority for Australia and, indeed, for the world. I commend the motion to the House.

Steve Georganas (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I too would like to congratulate the member for Parramatta for bringing such an important motion to the House to highlight this very important issue that affects many poor nations around the world. As the motion identifies, 12 to 18 October has been declared Anti-Poverty Week, with this Friday 17 October being International Anti-Poverty Day. I would doubt that anyone truly disbelieves the merits of relatively wealthy nations such as Australia contributing to the development of poorer nations and the rise in living standards of their populations. Ongoing commentary and analysis of collective progress towards the UN’s Millennium Development Goals reminds us of the impoverished circumstances and lives of so many hundreds of millions of our fellow human beings around the world—circumstances that have persisted for generations, but circumstances in which current generations look to a brighter future as a result, in part, of the efforts and support of wealthier countries.

A few recent reports indicate that the proportion of people living on less than US$1.25 per day has decreased from 29 per cent of the world’s population in 1990 to 18 per cent in 2004, and it is expected to decrease to 12 per cent by 2015. The number of children dying from preventable diseases around the world has decreased by half, to 30,000 per day—that is a 50 per cent drop, albeit over 20 years. Now we are experiencing 30,000 deaths per day, virtually a million per month, which is over 10 million per year. Two million more people are being treated for AIDS, while two million more people are infected every year. Forty-one million extra children are going to school. While some nations continue to make progress towards meeting the eight Millennium Development Goals by 2015, some nations face the prospect of not meeting any.

Academics fear that the recent world food shortages and oil spike may have wiped out recent gains in many, many countries. In particular, in our neighbourhood, Papua New Guinea is at risk of not reaching one of the eight Millennium Development Goals. A recent report highlights their disadvantage. Fifty per cent are under a basic-needs poverty line; 46 per cent of children do not complete primary school; child mortality is at 74 deaths per thousand; maternal mortality is at 470 out of 100,000; and 475 people per 100,000 contract TB. As such an important and close neighbour, Papua New Guinea’s predicament must call Australia to intensified action. The government has of course committed to increasing the share of Australia’s wealth dedicated towards international development. No doubt the systems that need to be put in place to channel these increasing funds towards real and measurable outcomes need time to develop. We must of course make sure that our action is effective and that development assistance achieves the outcomes for which we all strive.

Australia’s historical government aid may not be the most effective means of achieving shared Millennium Development Goals, Australia’s government aid might not even be the most useful in every context, but there is enormous collective will focused on the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals throughout the Australian community and overseas populations. We are blessed with a well-educated population and a highly skilled private sector. We have a population that will stand up for what is decent and right. I believe that a tremendous opportunity exists for the Australian population itself to contribute to the alleviation of overwhelming poverty in our very own region.

I support of course our government’s increase in government aid, the increase in the focus of our aid and the attempt to improve the results of our aid, but I especially wish to congratulate the Australian public for its lack of acceptance of world poverty and its continuing attempts to highlight the acute and unnecessary levels of disadvantage, disease and death in so many nation states around the world, including in our very own backyard. I wish to give all the encouragement I can to those people, whether they are community volunteers, as we saw here on the parliament lawns today, church groups or the more altruistic within the private sector, who continue in their efforts to make our world a better place for the bottom billion-odd people around the world today and the billions and billions of our fellow human beings who we hope will not be born into poverty in the decades ahead. I commend the motion to members of the House.

Michael Johnson (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to speak on this motion on poverty and, like my colleagues, I thank and commend the member for Parramatta for bringing this matter to the attention of the House and Australians generally. Australia is a very lucky country. Australians are blessed to live in a land that is not only free and democratic but rich in culture, wealth and opportunity. It is that opportunity that allows us to develop our talents and to fulfil our goals and dreams. We are the blessed ones in any eyes. That is not the case for hundreds and hundreds of millions of our fellow citizens across the world. That is why this motion is important. Although there are very difficult global economic challenges, relatively speaking Australians live in prosperity, in harmony and in a peaceful nation. Therefore, it is all the more important that we in the parliament remember that there are so many who do not have the opportunities that we in this country have.

This week is Anti-Poverty Week. It aims to strengthen the public understanding of the causes and consequences of poverty and hardship around the world and in our own part of the world, the Asia-Pacific region. It aims to remind us to encourage research, to discuss all the issues around poverty and trying to alleviate poverty and to address these problems in a collaborative and sustainable fashion. This includes actions by individuals, communities, organisations and governments at all levels. The principal national sponsors of this week are Community Sector Banking and Jobs Australia. There are some 13 national sponsors. I thank them for their participation in Anti-Poverty Week. Anti-Poverty Week has grown from four activities in 2002 to more than 250 registered activities last year. That shows the interest of Australians in doing their bit and raising awareness in the community.

In Australia Make Poverty History is a coalition of more than 68 agencies, community groups and religious organisations. The coalition seeks to ensure the Australian government creates policies that guarantee and improve aid. It focuses on debt relief, fairer trade, helping poorer communities to keep their governments as accountable as possible and trying to honour the commitments made to the Millennium Development Goals. The Millennium Development Goals are of deep interest to my constituents in the western suburbs of Brisbane in the Ryan electorate. It is an electorate that is very community minded and that takes a deep interest in the affairs of our region and the world, particularly the struggling parts of our world. The Millennium Development Goals are a series of goals and milestones aimed at trying to halve poverty by 2015. The eight main goals are: to end poverty and hunger, to achieve universal education, to reduce child mortality, to promote gender equality, to improve maternal health, to combat HIV-AIDS, to ensure environmental sustainability and to develop a global partnership for development. The goal is to meet all MDGs by 2015, and rich countries need to more than double their current aid levels. As a member of the national parliament of Australia, I want to lend my support to this tremendously worthwhile and visionary initiative.

We live in a very fortunate country, but in our region there are so many countries that are struggling. My mother is of Chinese background and I have heard the stories of how she grew up in desperate poverty in China. My wife is Vietnamese and I have heard her stories of deep poverty in the towns and the villages that she grew up in with her family in Vietnam. I grew up in the country to our north, Papua New Guinea, and I have had a little bit of exposure to the great challenges of so many people. I very sincerely add my voice to this motion and thank the member for Parramatta for her initiative. I ask all my colleagues to try and focus on this as well as on all the other main issues in the national debates of this country.

Chris Hayes (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I too begin by thanking the member for Parramatta for raising this very, very important issue. Poverty and severe hardship affect more than a million Australians, and more than a billion people around the world would be considered desperately poor. Anti-Poverty Week, which focuses on poverty around the world, commenced yesterday and was established in Australia as an expansion of the UN’s annual International Anti-Poverty Day, which is on 17 October. The success of this week depends on people and organisations taking action and, particularly, drawing attention to reducing poverty and hardship throughout the world. Last year, there were more than 250 official events, and this year I have been advised that the figure will be even higher, which is a positive testament to the effects of the Micah Challenge and of the Australian community at large.

I take this opportunity to convey my gratitude to organisations in my electorate who are undoubtedly changing the lives of people and making a difference. Only last week I attended the community kitchen run by the Church at the Crossroads in Liverpool. I acknowledge the outstanding contribution of Pastor Gino Zucchi, national coordinator Tony Benjamin and Liverpool coordinator Jessica Buffa in providing services to the disadvantaged people of the south-west of Sydney. This community kitchen in Liverpool offers free, regular and nutritious meals to many people who would otherwise not have access to those meals. Additionally, it is also a great referral point where people can be put in contact with emergency accommodation, counselling and legal services, and more importantly it is an opportunity for social interaction. When I was talking to some of the people during my visit there last week, they were telling me how much they appreciate that there are people in our community that care for them. Imagine that on a worldwide scale. What makes this program at Liverpool even more wonderful is that Work for the Dole participants work there serving meals, providing hospitality to these people and, hopefully, receiving a sense of fulfilment from helping others in the community less fortunate than themselves.

Another area of my electorate I also draw attention to is the Guise breakfast club that Bernadette, my wife, and I attended a couple of weeks ago. Seven years ago, this club was started by Linda Ufope, a former P&C president of the Guise Public School, which is in the middle of Macquarie Fields. Dedicated volunteers provide breakfasts to kids who otherwise would be at school without any breakfast on a daily basis. Throughout the years, this program has provided a safe place for thousands of kids and has also resulted in improving attendance rates. The club runs five days a week and has at least a hundred kids every day it operates. So my sincere thanks go to the principal of the school, Bev Newitt, the current P&C president, Anne Sibley, and all of the volunteers and parents who volunteer their time.

On a wider scale, the Rotary Club of Ingleburn has taken on a very substantial commitment in helping the Nofo School on Emae Island in Vanuatu, an area in our own backyard. Vanuatu has a very small population, limited industry and resources and would be regarded as a very poor South Pacific nation. Its young people are increasingly vulnerable to poverty and health problems, particularly HIV and AIDS. I thank the President of the Rotary Club of Ingleburn, Reg Robinson, and his members, for what they are doing—physically building a school on this island for those kids to give them an opportunity.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge the efforts of both the Micah Challenge, who are here today and whom I will be meeting with tomorrow, and the Make Poverty History campaign for their continued commitment to this important matter. I understand that the UN aid target of 0.7 per cent remains an aspiration. This government has made an election commitment, and will honour it, to increase official development assistance to 0.5 per cent of gross national product by 2015, which is a Millennium Development strategy. I also note that this is a substantial increase in our international commitment. There are many different ways to make a difference, and I am proud to be a member of a government that is determined to maintain its focus on reducing disadvantage and improving the life chances of children and families throughout the world.

Stuart Robert (Fadden, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to support the motion as part of Anti-Poverty Week and to lend my voice to the call for the Australian government to continue to play a leadership role in our region and to honour our commitment to the Millennium Development Goals. At the millennium conference in September 2000 Australia joined the rest of the world in saying, as part of the UN Millennium Declaration:

We will spare no effort to free our fellow men, women and children from the abject and dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty, to which more than a billion of them are currently subjected. We are committed to making the right to development a reality for everyone and to freeing the entire human race from want.

For these fine aspirations to be achieved, it is essential that Australia continue to scale up its aid, as planned, towards 0.7 per cent of GDP.

By way of history: in 1970, the international community adopted an aid target for more-developed countries of 0.7 per cent—that is, developed countries should devote 70c in every $100 they earn to international development assistance. The international aid target of 0.7 per cent of GDP has been affirmed on numerous occasions by the international community, including the UN General Assemblies of 1980 and 1990, the 1992 Rio de Janeiro Conference on Environment and Development, the 1995 World Summit for Social Change and Development in Copenhagen, the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg and the 2002 International Conference on Financing for Development in Monterrey, Mexico. The international aid target has been recognised as a national aspiration by the current government and, indeed, the previous Howard government. The international aid target provides a way of ensuring that each developed economy can make an equitable contribution to the international aid effort.

It is noted that the domestic resources of many developing countries are so low that they are unable to make the investments they need in infrastructure, health and education. For example, in 2006 government expenditures, converted to purchasing power parities, saw the government of Australia spend a little over US$6,131 per Australian, but the government of Cambodia was able to spend only $109, the government of Malawi only $122 and the government of Bangladesh $140 per individual citizen. In other words, when the governments of Cambodia, Bangladesh and Malawi seek to provide services to their people they have revenues that, in purchasing power terms, are less than 2.5 per cent of the purchasing power of the Australian government.

Development assistance can help developing countries fill the financing gap. Yet let us not be fooled: aid alone cannot solve poverty. Developing countries must implement effective plans to lift their populations out of poverty and mobilise their own public and private resources to this end. But, even after they have done this, developing countries still may need assistance for the short term, provided by developed nations, to bridge the gap between their own resources and their needed resources. We know that well-used aid can achieve dramatic and rapid results. In recent years, Australia has made significant improvements to the volume and focus of its aid program, to the point where this year the budget is 0.32 per cent of Australia’s GDP, rising to 0.5 per cent by 2015.

If the developing world is to engage and benefit from the resources provided by the developed world, the issue of corruption must be addressed. Corruption hurts countries, it harms communities and it scars individuals. It is a threat to the economic stability and security of countries whose resources have been stolen or diverted. The Royal African Society in London have stated that Africa loses as much as US$148 billion a year in corruption—a figure that is accepted by the UN and the World Bank—which represents 25 per cent of the gross domestic product of African countries. They claim the money is rarely invested in Africa.

Eliminating corruption globally will require significant effort by all countries. However, it will not be assisted by withholding aid from developing countries. Withholding aid is likely to only increase corruption and hurt the poorest and least powerful in the countries where aid is withheld. Instead, aid needs to be targeted in ways that do not assist corruption and that support parts of society that are seeking to tackle the corruption epidemic. Whilst the answers to lifting many of the world’s people out of poverty are complex, it must start with the leaders of the developing world being honest. It must start with corruption being anathema. I commend the work of Micah Challenge and I look forward to seeing the Millennium Development Goals realised.

Dick Adams (Lyons, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.