Quote:
1bn aid to Indonesia wins universal praise
By Mark Metherell and Aban Contractor
January 7, 2005
The Prime Minister's $1 billion assistance plan for Indonesia has drawn praise from even the most trenchant critics of the Federal Government's aid effort.
The contribution, which more than doubles Australia's existing aid to Indonesia, includes an unprecedented partnership scheme that will involve equal and direct co-ordination by senior ministers of both governments over at least the next five years.
The $1 billion in assistance over that period will cover current emergency military, medical and civilian aid as well as budget for hundreds of millions of dollars to be spent on reconstruction and scholarship programs to train engineers, health professionals and administrators.
Half of the aid money will finance interest-free loans for big infrastructure rebuilding projects. The loans will be for up to 40 years, with repayments not required for 10 years.
In an initiative to underpin a bipartisan approach, the aid scheme will be overseen by a joint commission with both countries' leaderships having an equal say on priorities.
The Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, said last night the new approach was preferable to merely handing $1 billion to "someone else".
The Prime Minister, John Howard, said the partnership reflected "the increasingly close relationship" between Australia and Indonesia.
The Opposition, which has criticised the Government's aid policies and its handling of the relationship with Indonesia, applauded the size and strength of the plan.
"This provides the best platform yet in drawing a line over the past and building a new relationship between Canberra and Jakarta," Labor's foreign spokesman, Kevin Rudd, said.
While Labor still wanted to see the detail of the aid plan, Mr Rudd said the $1 billion scheme was "the best thing the Howard Government has done" for Indonesia.
The Australian Council for International Development, which has been a frequent critic of government aid policies, hailed the Government's contribution as "decisive and generous".
The council, formerly the Australian Council for Overseas Aid, represents the main non-government aid organisations. It has previously attacked both Coalition and Labor governments over the steady decline in real terms of Australia's foreign aid commitments.
The council's executive director, Graham Tupper, said yesterday it was important that the new assistance would be provided over five years, "ensuring significant and predictable resources for medium-term reconstruction and poverty alleviation beyond the immediate relief needs".
The proposal for a joint commission to oversee the aid, Mr Tupper said, would speed things up, getting help to those needing it quicker than the existing aid processes, which often involved lengthy negotiations between two countries.
"This is something we have not seen from Australia before," he said. "It should put in place a good model for future co-operation.
"The other unique feature is the very high level of political engagement, [involving] heads of government."
Mr Tupper said the contribution reflected the sentiments of the Australian people, with the community having donated more than $110 million to non-government aid agencies.
He also urged the Government to consider international initiatives to relieve foreign debts on countries like Indonesia.
Mr Howard has not embraced that idea, on the grounds it is a policy unlikely to directly benefit those most in need in tsunami-affected countries.
Five-year commitment
GRANT AID: $500 million for urgent work, including:
- Small-scale reconstruction of infrastructure in tsunami-hit areas;
- A "large" scholarships program for engineering, health and public administration trainees;
- Existing and planned emergency help comprising about 900 defence personnel and a navy support ship, seven large military aircraft, four helicopters, a water purifying plant, a field hospital, medical teams and emergency shelter.
LOANS: $500 million in interest-free loans for up to 40 years with no repayment of principal for 10 years to finance the rebuilding of major infrastructure.
PARTNERSHIP: an Indonesian-Australian joint commission to develop and oversee the scheme.
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I'll be perfectly honest and say I was rather suprised at this announcement. I'm not a particular fan of Howard, but I'm delighted at this effort. It really should silence his critics; even those who object to his decision not to freeze or abolish debts.
The only topic worth debating, I believe, is the bi-lateral basis of this scheme. Ideally I should have liked to see it as part of the greater global effort, but I can understand why Australia feels that it's more in their national interest to handle it as they are.
The current donations now stand as follows:
Code:
1) - Austrlaia - $1B (population of 20M)
2) - Germany - $890M (population of 82.3M)
3) - Japan - $654M (population of 127.2M)
4) - US - $458M (population of 290M)
5) - World Bank - $327.3M (population N/A)
6) - Norway - $238M (population of 4.5M)
7) - Britian - $125.6M (population of 60M)
8) - Italy - $124.3M (population of 58M)
9) - Sweden - $104.7M (population of 9M)
10) - Canada - $104.7M (population of 31M)
Kudos to Norway for such a huge contribution compared to their size. Wow.
It's notable that none of the (very) rich Islamic countries have come to the aid of their muslim brothers. This annoys me no end.
Mr Mephisto