Andrew Broad (Mallee, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On a quiet evening such as this, it is important to raise issues that I think do not often get touched on in this parliament. This is something that I think is very important to our standing in the world and to the generosity that defines us as Australian people, and that is foreign aid. Foreign aid is very important. It is something I hold very dear to my heart. But I think we have perhaps failed, in this parliament and in many previous parliaments, to sell the story of what can be achieved through our generosity in the Asia-Pacific region and throughout the world—to the point where our government and previous governments can make cuts to foreign aid, and Australians largely ignore it, sometimes applaud it or accept it as a budgetary savings measure. There is of course some waste in our foreign aid program, and we should, wherever we can, minimise that waste.

But, if something that defines us as Australians is our generous nature, then an example to the world of our generous nature is how we give to and care for those who are less fortunate than us. I fear that aid has become 'out of sight, out of mind' and I fear that we have not learnt to value what we cannot see. We talk about indexation of pensions, we talk about funding for the unemployed, we talk about funding for our roads—and they are all big challenges for our budget. But 20c can save a life. Immunisation, which we know from our own population saves lives, can do tremendous things in our region. I fear that perhaps we as leaders become a little bit focused on our internal budget and so we do not take ownership of the responsibility that leadership bestows on us to take the Australian people on the journey of foreign aid.

I have written to the Prime Minister and I have pointed out that the targeted aid, in particular, provides opportunities for value-adding and encouraging economic growth in countries such as Indonesia and Papua New Guinea and in the South Pacific. It does deal with health and education, empowering young women and girls in particular. When we spend our foreign aid on microbusinesses with women, that money is not wasted. But sometimes when it goes to the male in the household, the money it is drunk. When the money goes to the women in the household, they grab hold of that opportunity and help lift the standard of living for the children.

We see that aid can build ineffective governance. We take for granted what we have in a country that largely has no corruption. If we can instil effective governance in other parts of the world and reduce corruption through our interaction, that also helps lift the standard of living for others. And also, in information exchange in agriculture, I am mindful that our farmers use global positioning systems; but I have seen another GPS in agriculture, and it is as basic as a piece of string—literally running a string line out and planting a crop on it. This has helped to lift yields and the availability of food for people in developing countries.

There are many things we can offer. One of those things is the skills we have and the exchange of those skills. As part of our foreign aid budget, if we can encourage Australians to participate more in the Asia-Pacific region with short trips to enhance those skills, that not only helps lift their standard of living; it also lifts our understanding, our sense of pride and our sense of purpose. Australians have a lot to offer. My hope and my dream is that we will not say that the economy is tough and see foreign aid as something that can continue to be cut.

One of the things I was most proud of in my own personal business was when our business gave some money and bought 3,000 meals post the tsunami. We were in a drought and we went through difficult times in our business; but, when I look back, it is a thing I value very much after my 20 years of farming. Times will always be challenging in this place; but, as leaders, let's sell the story about the value of foreign aid, and may we continue to grow it in budgets to come.