Category: aid


More child and maternal health aid

Filed under: aid, health, social justice — Leave a comment
June 25, 2011

On Wednesday (23 June 2011) I attended a Micah Challenge breakfast at Federal Parliament where Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd commended Australian churches for their strong focus on justice, and assured us that Australia remains on track to meet its foreign aid target of 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income by 2015.

Another speaker, Esther Indriani from World Vision International, briefed church leaders and departmental staff on maternal and child health issues in the Asia-Pacific region. She noted that in Indonesia, 163,000 children under five yesra old die every year; and in India, the number is 1.7 million. This is due to poor nutrition, low education, highest workloads and lowest incomes for women, and difficulty in accessing family planning.

The key to addressing child and maternal mortality is a stronger aid commitment to health. Yet despite significant growth in Australia’s aid budget, the proportion spent on health is declining.

In a world where 22,000 children die every day from preventable causes, and approximately 1,000 women die every day from complications during pregnancy, much more could be done — if only our politicians had the will to ensure that aid dollars went to where they were most needed.

Broadcast on 2CH Sydney, Sunday 26 June 2011.

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Churches welcome aid budget increase

Filed under: aid, federal government, poverty — Leave a comment
May 31, 2011

Most Australian families operate on a budget. So do companies, clubs and societies, and churches. And so, of course, does the federal government. Beyond the figures, a budget is a strong indication of an organisation’s core priorities, while changes from year to year show how those priorities fluctuate.

Last week’s federal budget was a dog’s breakfast of policy detail, and the political spin cycle worked overtime to convince and confuse us all.

But one very pleasing commitment from Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan was an increase in the aid budget of almost $500 million, which will keep the government on track to meet its projected aid commitment of 0.5 per cent of national income by 2015.

This is still only 35 cents in every $100, and falls far short of the 0.7 per cent that aid agencies and churches believe is just and achievable for Australia.

But it will mean more opportunities for social transformation among the world’s poorest people, and many more lives saved. And in the final analysis, that’s well worth the cost.

Broadcast on 2CH Sydney, Sunday 15 May 2011.

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Don’t steal from our aid budget

Filed under: aid, politics and faith, social justice — Leave a comment
February 11, 2011

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott

This week the Federal Opposition announced a proposal to defer $448 million of foreign aid to Indonesia as part of its opposition to the Gillard Government’s flood levy.

On June 21 last year, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott told a public meeting that he supported a government commitment on 0.5 per cent of national income in overseas development aid by 2015.

But on Tuesday this week, Mr Abbott wasn’t so sure.  He said the Federal Opposition remained committed to the 2015 goal, but added that “it’s not necessarily a commitment for the next couple of years.”

For those who are hungry, sick and dying, that’s not a welcome statement.  Of all the spending our political leaders might choose to defer on account of the cost of rebuilding after recent natural disasters, poverty reduction in the world’s poorest regions should not be among them.

The need for action is urgent.  We have a moral responsibility to honour our national commitment to global poverty reduction.

Broadcast on 2CH Sydney, 13 Feb 2011.

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Remember the world’s poor

Filed under: aid, poverty — Leave a comment
September 8, 2010

By Rod Benson

Well, what a week it’s been! An uninspiring federal election campaign and an inconclusive result; the so-called “Greenslide,” and the youngest ever federal member of parliament.

As we wait for the dust to settle, and the key players to form government, it’s worth noting the call by our aid agencies to remember the world’s poorest people as we cast our votes.

Aid delivers many benefits, and Australia is well placed to contribute more.  But both major parties have made only vague and conditional statements about it.

An increase from 0.5 to 0.7 per cent of Gross National Income (or 20c in every hundred dollars we make as a nation) would directly prevent the deaths of 220,000 people each year, provide clean water and sanitation for half a million, and give 4 million children access to basic education.

That’s a vision worth chasing, and it’s still not too late for our political leaders to do something significant for the world’s poorest people this year.

Broadcast on 2CH Sydney, 29 August 2010.

Image: http://www.indiastand.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/poverty_children.png

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Boost to health aid in PNG

Filed under: aid, health — Leave a comment
September 8, 2010

By Rod Benson

The federal government announced on Thursday it will increase funding to churches in Papua New Guinea by $50 million over six years to deliver basic health and education services to the nation’s poorest and most disadvantaged.

Some will see this as an inappropriate compromise of the separation of church and state.  But the fact is that the best way to avoid corruption and ensure that funds reach their target is to use the reliable and accountable services of church agencies – agencies that have worked in these locations for decades, and are well placed to get the best value from our tax dollars.

As Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith put it, “Australia’s support for these efforts recognises the vital role churches play in delivering approximately half the country’s health and education programs.”

It’s the story of the Good Samaritan played out in thousands of lives, and we’re all a part of it, wherever our aid dollars go to work.

Broadcast on 2CH Sydney, 11 July 2010.

Image: http://images.smh.com.au/2010/07/07/1679869/PNGmain-420×0.jpg

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