Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The schoolchildren clapped as we arrived as part of the Save the Children delegation of parliamentarians on a visit to Cambodia to learn the importance of Australian aid. It was the warmest of welcomes from the schoolchildren. Their pride and joy at their primary school was their library. Funded by the Australian aid program at a cost of about US$9,000, it is a modern white-and-red library and learning space. It was something that you would expect to see in an Australian school. The children took delight in showing us their interactive learning games on their Samsung tablets, and their favourite schoolbooks and learning resources.

The school also has a thriving garden-to-kitchen and music program. School attendance at this school is higher than at other schools in Cambodia, where school attendance is generally quite poor, particularly in the country's regional schools. The schoolteachers attribute these programs—their library, music program and the garden-to-kitchen program—as contributing to the school's higher attendance rates. The importance of these programs was brought home to the delegation when we visited workplaces in the city. Many female garment and entertainment workers that we met said that they had had only had a few years of schooling, with many having left the school system after completing only one or two years of primary school. The exploitation of these women was rife in the country, according to many NGOs working with them—they had been encouraged or forced by their families to migrate from rural villages to the city to look for work. Rural farming is hard, with little reward, with many Cambodian farmers we met earning as little as 25c a day. This is the reason why Australian aid is so critical to this country.

Cambodia is one of the poorest nations in our region, and it relies heavily on Australia's support. Australian aid is giving some of Cambodia's poorest and most disadvantaged people the capacity to make positive change in their lives. The Liberal government has cut $11 billion from the Australian aid program in just two budgets. Their first budget—the 'budget emergency'—was a mantra used to justify these massive cuts. However, let's call it what it is: a funding priority issue.

This government spent $6 million on rebranding the Australian Border Force agency, including $15,000 on plush puppy toys to rebrand their image. This government also spent over $15,000 on a custom built bookshelf for the Attorney-General and a further $13,000 on a library of his own. Compare that to what was spent on the primary school library in Cambodia—only $9,000. It comes down to priorities, and this government has its priorities wrong with it comes to Australian aid.