Development Policy Centre Podcast

On the eve of the 2021–22 Federal Budget, Stephen Howes set out three tests for Australia's aid budget: Will there be any further increases in aid next year? Will the government sustain any aid increases beyond this year and next? Will the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade provide an estimate of this year's and next year's Official Development Assistance (ODA)? In this ninth edition of Devpolicy's aid budget breakfast, he answers those questions, provides analysis on the broader budget context and compares aid and defence spending. He also looks at specific aid updates, including how the Pacific Step-up has been funded, regional and sectoral trends, multilaterals and NGO aid. The analysis finishes with a look at some of the major aid initiatives in response to COVID-19 and Australian aid in the global context over the past decade.>> view presentation>> read blogSpeaker:Professor Stephen Howes is Director of the Development Policy Centre and Professor of Economics at the Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University. Photo credit: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

The Australia Pacific Training Coalition (APTC) is a major Australian government foreign aid initiative that commenced in 2008, that has spent over $350 million, and that has turned out over 15,000 graduates with Australian qualifications. In a recent Devpolicy Discussion Paper, Richard Curtain and Stephen Howes analyse graduate tracer surveys and show that employment outcomes for APTC graduate job-seekers have worsened over the last decade. This is mainly because of falling demand for the trades and hospitality qualifications APTC has offered since inception. They suggest a more demand-led approach to course selection and a greater focus on promoting international migration opportunities to improve employment outcomes for APTC graduates. In a related Policy Brief they propose that APTC should redirect its labour mobility efforts and focus on the Temporary Skill Shortage visa and those graduates who are eligible to migrate to Australia as skilled workers.>> view presentation>> view Discussion Paper>> view Policy BriefSpeakers:Dr Richard Curtain is a Research Fellow specialising in Pacific labour mobility at the Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University.Professor Stephen Howes is Director of the Development Policy Centre and Professor of Economics at the Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.Chair:Sadhana Sen is Regional Communications Adviser at the Development  Policy Centre, The Australian National University. Photo credit: Flickr/DFAT

Australian foreign aid has changed considerably in the last 20 years. Dr Terence Wood discusses the findings of a recently published report that examines the changing nature of Australian government aid through the lens of publicly available data on aid flows, which provide evidence of change and allow direct comparisons between Australia and other OECD Development Assistance Committee donors. These comparisons help highlight where Australian aid conforms with international norms of good giving, where Australia lags behind the global community, and where it is a global leader.Speaker:Dr Terence Wood is a Research Fellow at the Development Policy Centre. His research focuses on the domestic political economy of aid in donor countries, public opinion about aid, NGOs, aid effectiveness in poorly governed states, and Melanesian electoral politics. >> view presentation>> view reportChair:Ashlee Betteridge, Manager,  Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University Photo Credit: DFAT/Timothy Tobing/CC BY 2.0

Charles Scheiner presents the 2021 economic survey of Timor-Leste, outlining  the current economic situation, particularly in relation to the state budget, and the dominance of the Petroleum Fund in state finances. He also looks at future oil and gas possibilities, including Greater Sunrise and the Tasi Mane petroleum infrastructure project, and argues regardless of the paths Timor-Leste chooses to follow, investing in its people – through education, health and nutrition – is essential. The presentation is a draft of a forthcoming paper in the Pacific Survey series, published in the Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies journal.Speaker:Charles Scheiner is a researcher at La'o Hamutuk, the Timor-Leste Institute for Development Monitoring and Analysis, an independent, non-partisan, Timorese civil society research organisation. He specialises in the effects of oil and gas extraction, including on economics, governance, environment and revenue management. >> view presentation>> view presentation with notesChair:Professor Stephen Howes, Director, Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University Photo credit: Charles Scheiner

The economic costs of COVID-19 continue to mount, globally and in the Pacific. But what is the damage in the Pacific, and how are Pacific governments responding? In this webinar, panellists explore the economic damage caused by COVID-19 and the responses Pacific governments are taking. Professor Stephen Howes presents an overview based on the Pacific Covid Economic Database compiled by the Development Policy Centre. Dr Jenny Gordon, Chief Economist at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, assesses pathways to recovery post COVID-19 in Pacific Island economies. Dr Neelesh Gounder and Maholopa Laveil present their perspectives on Fiji and PNG, respectively.Panellists:Professor Stephen Howes, Director, Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University» view presentationDr Jenny Gordon, Chief Economist, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade» view presentation Dr Neelesh Gounder, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of the South PacificMaholopa Laveil, Lecturer in Economics, University of Papua New Guinea» view presentationChair:Sadhana Sen, Regional Media Adviser, Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University Photo credit: Gail Hampshire on Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Historically, Australia has lacked a coherent policy to attract immigrants with less extensive formal training and education, despite the needs of its ageing population and labour market. The Center for Global Development has recently concluded a project with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, which has produced two papers. Michael Clemens outlines the findings of the first paper, which estimates the demand for vocational workers in Australia by 2050 will exceed native supply by over two million. While there will be ample skilled labour available within Pacific Island countries, facilitating this movement in a managed way that maximises the development potential of migration will be key. To that end, Satish Chand discusses the second paper, which proposes the development of a ‘Pacific Skills Partnership', a model that would facilitate skills creation across 14 low-income Pacific Island countries, with the greatest development potential lying in Papua New Guinea.Speakers:Michael Clemens is Director of Migration, Displacement, and Humanitarian Policy and a Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development, where he studies the economic effects and causes of migration around the world. >> Related paper:  Skill Development and Regional Mobility: Lessons from the Australia-Pacific Technical College – Working Paper 370Satish Chand is a Professor of Finance in the School of Business at the University of New South Wales and based at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Crawford School of Public Policy at The Australian National University. His research interests include labour migration, fragile states, and the challenges of development.>> View presentation>> Related paper: A Pacific Skills Partnership: Improving the APTC to Meet Skills Needed in the RegionChair:Dr Ryan Edwards, Deputy Director, Development Policy Centre, The Australian National UniversityPhoto: Hohola Youth Development Centre, PNG (DFAT/Flickr CC BY 2.0)

It is time to fundamentally reframe the research agenda on migration, remittances, payments and development. Many policymakers in the developing world, and researchers, tend to view migrant remittances as windfall income, rather than as returns on investment, which is how families with migrants tend to see remittances. Migration is thus, among other things, a strategy for financial management in poor households: location is an asset, migration an investment.Some of the most basic questions about remittances and their effects remain inadequately answered, in part because of a blinded research agenda. Asking better questions is a step towards better policies, programs and regulations and, above all, to enable people on low incomes to improve their lives.In this webinar, based on the article “Migration and household finances: How a different framing can improve thinking about migration”, Timothy Ogden discusses some of the new and alternative research questions that emerge from the shift of perspective on remittances – from windfall to return on investment.Speaker:Timothy Ogden is Managing Director of the Financial Access Initiative, a research centre housed at New York University's (NYU) Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service focused on how financial services can better meet the needs and improve the lives of low-income households.>> view presentationChair:Dr Ryan Edwards, Deputy Director, Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University Photo credit: AU/UN Ist Photo/Stuart Price (Flickr CC0 1.0)  

In this panel event at the 2020 Australasian AID conference, John Langmore makes the case for stronger government and civil society commitment to conflict prevention and peacebuilding. Joanna Pradela argues that Australia should adopt a feminist approach to foreign policy, one that is grounded in gender equality. Pierre van der Eng analyses the rapid expansion of Australia's foreign aid to Indonesia during the 1960s and 1970s in the context of Australia's evolving foreign policy towards Asia. And Dave Green and Kaisha Crupi report on their analysis of Aid Program Performance Reports, including their purpose, how well they deliver on their purposes, the challenges associated with balanced public reporting on program performance, and the tension between public diplomacy and performance management objectives.Presenters:Security through sustainable peace (at 2:50 in)Professor John Langmore AM, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Melbourne, and Dr Tania Miletic, Research Fellow, Melbourne School of Government, University of Melbourne Feminist foreign policy: A new approach for a new era (at 15:38 in) Joanna Pradela, Director, Knowledge Translation, International Women's Development Agency (IWDA), and Alice Ridge, Research Policy and Advocacy Adviser, IWDA >> view presentation‘Send them a shipload of rice': Food aid and Australia-Indonesia bilateral relations, 1960s–70s (at 29:35 in)Dr Pierre van der Eng, Associate Professor, Research School of Management, The Australian National University>> view presentationWhere's the dirty laundry? DFAT APPRs and the public diplomacy imperative (at 44:24 in)Dave Green, Principal Consultant, Clear Horizon and Kaisha Crupi, Consultant, Clear Horizon>> view presentationChair: Professor Caitlin Byrne, Director of the Griffith Asia Institute, Griffith University

In the Pacific over the past three decades, women's domestic violence services have led advocacy for policy for increased gender equality, women's human rights and in engaging men and boys as allies and advocates in prevention of violence against women. In partnership with regional governments, development partners and Australia's aid and development resources, this model has provided agency, leadership and generated a significant shift towards building support and a more strategic approach. This panel of experts discuss their views on how best to engage men and boys for primary prevention of violence against women. Panellists: Melkie Anton, male advocate for ending violence against women and development project adviserAbigail Erikson, Program Specialist, UN Women Amy Gildea, Managing Director Asia and Pacific, Coffey International Development H.E. John Kali CMG OBE, High Commissioner for Papua New Guinea to AustraliaChair: Glenn Davies, Director, Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion Asia and Pacific, Coffey International Development 

In November 2018, the Australian Government announced the Pacific step-up, taking its engagement with the Pacific to a new level. Despite this shift, new research finds that many people in the Pacific are concerned Australia does not know how to engage successfully as part of the Pacific community. This panel event at the 2020 Australasian Aid Conference outlines the key findings of research commissioned by the Whitlam Institute on the views of Pacific islanders from Fiji, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands on their countries' and region's future place in the world. The panel explore how these three island nations perceive Australians and the government's policies and interventions in the Pacific, and makes some recommendations. >> Read the research report here Panellists:Dr Tess Newton-Cain, Principal, TNC Pacific ConsultingJames Cox, Executive Director, PeacificaDr Geir Henning Presterudstuen, Lecturer, Anthropology, Western Sydney UniversityLinda Kenni, Local Consultant, Vanuatu Chair:Leanne Smith, Director, Whitlam Institute

The welfare gains from increasing cross-border labour mobility are likely to be several times larger than those from complete trade liberalisation, offering significant benefits to migrants, receiving, and sending countries. This panel outlines the case for international labour mobility, summarises the lessons learned from the first year of Australia's new Pacific Labour Scheme, and provides an overview and initial assessment of recent recruitment reforms in Papua New Guinea.Panellists:Farah Hani, Senior Policy Analyst, Labor Mobility Partnerships team, Center for Global Development>> view presentation slidesDanielle Heinecke, First Assistant Secretary, Pacific Operations and Development, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Dr Matthew Dornan, Senior Economist, World Bank>> view presentation slidesChair:Dr Ryan Edwards, Senior Policy Fellow, Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University

Offering social assistance programs has become an increasingly prominent strategy to alleviate poverty in many parts of the developing world, including in Indonesia. Drawing on Indonesia's decades-long experience in developing social assistance programs, government officials and a leading evidence-based policy research institution, The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab Southeast Asia (J-PAL SEA), highlight proven methods to address key emerging challenges and improve anti-poverty programs. Panellists: Dr Vivi Yulaswati, Senior Advisor to the Minister of National Development Planning for Social Affairs and Poverty Reduction of Indonesia (Bappenas)>> view presentation slidesDr Elan Satriawan, Chief of Policy Working Group, National Team for the Acceleration of Poverty Reduction (TNP2K) of Indonesia>> view presentation slidesLina Marliani, Executive Director of The Abdul Latief Jameel Poverty Action Lab Southeast Asia (J-PAL SEA)>> view presentation slidesChair:Professor Budy Resosudarmo, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University

The language and theory of ‘aid' is outdated. But something like it is still needed as the world faces huge common challenges, new and old. In this keynote address, Jonathan Glennie sets out a new approach for the 21st century: global public investment. He proposes five paradigm shifts for the future of concessional international public finance, as the world of international development moves on from an old-fashioned ‘aid' mentality.Keynote speaker:Jonathan Glennie, Principal Associate at the Joep Lange Institute, and writer and researcher on poverty and human rights Chair:Elizabeth Peak, First Assistant Secretary, Human Development and Governance Division, Department of Foreign Affairs and TradeIntroduced by: Professor Stephen Howes, Director, Development Policy Centre, The Australian National University

In this keynote address delivered on 19 February at the 2020 Australasian AID Conference, Alex Hawke, Minister for International Development and the Pacific, outlines the key trends in the Indo-Pacific region affecting Australia's development partners and shaping its new international development policy. He also discusses Australia's longstanding commitment to the region and its Pacific step-up, and how Australia will continue to support the region and keep it strong.Minister Hawke is introduced by Helen Sullivan, Director of the Crawford School of Public Policy at The Australian National University. Keynote speaker:Alex Hawke, Minister for International Development and the PacificChair:Helen Sullivan, Director of the Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU College of Asia & the Pacific, The Australian National University

Australia's aid program to PNG is its biggest, its highest profile and most controversial. In this insightful keynote panel at the 2020 Australasian AID conference, Jonathan Pryke outlines the findings of his research into Australia's aid program to PNG, His Excellency John Kali CMG OBE discusses key changes in the way Australian assistance is being delivered, Terence Wood presents the findings of the third Australian aid transparency audit, and Stephanie Copus Campbell reflects on the panel's perspectives on delivering development outcomes in PNG.Panellists:Jonathan Pryke, Director, Pacific Islands Program, Lowy Institute>> view presentationDr Terence Wood, Research Fellow, Development Policy Centre>> view presentationH.E. John Kali CMG OBE, High Commissioner for Papua New Guinea to Australia>> view transcript (check against audio recording)Stephanie Copus Campbell, CEO, Oil Search FoundationChair: Anthea Mulakala, Senior Director for International Development Cooperation at The Asia Foundation

In this keynote address, Dr Radhika Coomaraswamy discusses the evolution of the women, peace and security agenda, from representation and participation of women in peace processes, transformative justice and women combatants to livelihoods and empowerment of women in the post-conflict era and the role women play, and can play, in the prevention of conflict. Drawing on her personal experiences in the field, she explores the dilemmas and day-to-day lived realities of women in conflict and post-conflict theatres of war, and points to some of the challenges that lie ahead for the women, peace and security agenda in the international community.Keynote speaker:Dr Radhika Coomaraswamy, lawyer, diplomat and human rights advocateChair:Dr Jeni Klugman, Managing Director, Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security

Australia’s aid program to PNG is its biggest, its highest profile and most controversial. In this insightful keynote panel at the 2020 Australasian AID conference, Jonathan Pryke outlines the findings of his research into Australia’s aid program to PNG, His Excellency John Kali CMG OBE discusses key changes in the way Australian assistance is being delivered, Terence Wood presents the findings of the third Australian aid transparency audit, and Stephanie Copus Campbell reflects on the panel’s perspectives on delivering development outcomes in PNG. Chair: Anthea Mulakala, Senior Director for International Development Cooperation at The Asia Foundation Panellists: Jonathan Pryke, Director, Pacific Islands Program, Lowy Institute Dr Terence Wood, Research Fellow, Development Policy Centre H.E. John Kali CMG OBE, High Commissioner for Papua New Guinea to Australia Stephanie Copus Campbell, CEO, Oil Search Foundation

In this keynote address, Dr Radhika Coomaraswamy discusses the evolution of the women, peace and security agenda, from representation and participation of women in peace processes, transformative justice and women combatants to livelihoods and empowerment of women in the post-conflict era and the role women play, and can play, in the prevention of conflict. Drawing on her personal experiences in the field, she explores the dilemmas and day-to-day lived realities of women in conflict and post-conflict theatres of war, and points to some of the challenges that lie ahead for the women, peace and security agenda in the international community. Keynote Speaker: Dr Radhika Coomaraswamy, lawyer, diplomat and human rights advocate Chair: Dr Jeni Klugman, Managing Director, Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security

In 2019 the Nobel prize for economics went to three economists who have promoted the use and importance of Randomised Control Trials (RCTs) in development economics and interventions. But how useful are RCTs in the real world of development assistance? And what more generally needs to be done to improve the quality and impact of impact evaluations, and to promote learning in aid? Panellists: The Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP, Member for Fenner, ACT Dr Lant Pritchett, Research Director, RISE Programme; Fellow, Blavatnik School of Government, Oxford University Dr Jyotsna Puri, Head, Independent Evaluation Unit, Green Climate Fund Professor Stephen Howes, Director, Development Policy Centre, ANU (Chair)

In November 2019, Professor Stephen Howes sat down with Michael Kocher and Matt Reed of the Aga Khan Foundation to discuss the work of the Foundation, one of the ten development arms of the Aga Khan Development Network. Professor Stephen Howes is the Director of the Development Policy Centre at the Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University Michael Kocher is the global General Manager of the Aga Khan Foundation Matt Reed is Chief Executive Officer of the Aga Khan Foundation in the United Kingdom Photo credit: AKDN/Danial Shah

Family is the basic foundation for social and economic development across the world, and particularly in Papua New Guinea (PNG). However, this foundation is often challenged by family and sexual violence (FSV). In order to support policymaking that fosters healthy, safe and secure families, research was conducted in Lae in 2018 and 2019 to better understand men’s and women’s perspectives of FSV. Joshua Goa and Dunstan Lawihin of the University of Papua New Guinea discuss the research findings including men’s perspectives of the effects of FSV on their families; how men’s and women’s access and responses to recently established services and laws differ; men’s roles in addressing FSV and its effects on school children; and the strategies men have used for a harmonious home. The discussion is introduced by research project members Miranda Forsyth, Associate Professor at the School of Regulation and Global Governance at The Australian National University, and Dora Kuir-Ayius, Lecturer in social work at the University of Papua New Guinea. Joshua Goa is a Tutor at the University of Papua New Guinea Social Work Strand. Dunstan Lawihin is a Lecturer in Social Work and Coordinator of Field Education at the University of Papua New Guinea.

Should aid programs micromanage their work? Or should they leave staff on the ground the space to decide for themselves? In this presentation Dan Honig will speak to the key findings of his book, Navigation by Judgment, an in-depth attempt at answering these questions. Dan’s book draws on a novel database of more than 14,000 discrete development projects across nine agencies, and eight qualitative studies. He contends that tight controls and narrow focus on reaching pre-set targets can prevent frontline aid workers from using their skills to solve problems on the ground, undermining the performance of foreign aid. He suggests that pressure to demonstrate results can undermine performance, particularly in unpredictable environments where performance is difficult to measure. Dan Honig is an Assistant Professor of International Development at the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on the relationship between organisational structure, management practice, and performance in developing country governments and organisations that provide foreign aid.

On Wednesday 1 May, former World Bank Vice President Jim Adams presented his reflections on the performance of the Australian aid program. He is stepping down as Chair of DFAT's Independent Evaluation Committee after seven years in the role, and joined us at ANU to discuss how to build a robust performance culture based on accountability, transparency, learning and appropriate risk management.

In a talk at ANU on 12 April, Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP discussed how a Labor government will tackle tax avoidance in Australia and our region, and announced a new policy initiative to help crack down on multinational tax avoidance and restore fairness into the system.

Chinese development cooperation in Asia and the Pacific is growing rapidly. In this keynote panel at the 2019 Australasian Aid Conference, Chinese experts shared their insights on the rationale, aspirations and challenges of Chinese development cooperation, particularly in relation to the Belt and Road Initiative, responsible investment, the new development cooperation agency, and China's engagement in the Pacific. Panellists: Anthea Mulakala, The Asia Foundation (Chair) Hongbo Ji, The Asia Foundation Yujia Shen, Sun Yat-sen University Jinghang Jia, Ministry of Finance, China Xiuli Xu, China Institute for South-South Cooperation in Agriculture The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

Masood Ahmed, President of the Center for Global Development, gave a keynote address at the 2019 Australasian Aid Conference on 20 February. He discussed growing debt in low-income countries, and asked whether we are heading for another debt crisis. He also spoke about whether this is different from the debt crisis 20 years ago, what is driving debt growing in low-income countries, what can be done to reduce the risk of a crisis, and what policy could limit the possibility of a prolonged crisis. The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

Donald Kaberuka, former President of the African Development Bank and former Minister of Finance for Rwanda, presented the 2019 Mitchell Oration on 19 February at the 2019 Australasian Aid Conference. He spoke on the topic of 'Africa and the global landscape: emerging trends and the way forward'. The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

This panel reviewed and reflected on the on-the-ground experience of using a gender lens in the impact investment ecosystem in Asia and the Pacific. Panellists: Amy Haddad, DFAT (Chair) Joy Anderson, Criterion Institute Amanda Jupp, Pacific RISE Sally Moyle, CARE Australia Will Scott-Kemmis, SecondMuse (Frontier Innovators and Incubators) James Soukamneuth, Investing in Women The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

This panel brought together key players in the Australian aid sector to discuss best practice to approach the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse in the aid sector, as well as safeguarding issues. It also provided a platform for organisations to learn from and share their approaches and experiences. Panellists: Kate Sutton, Humanitarian Advisory Group (Chair) Juliette Brassington, DFAT Sarah Burrows, ACFID Rosie Wheen, WaterAid Thida Seng, WaterAid Australia Maaike Moller, Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

This panel highlighted the need for an increased focus on mental health and psychosocial disability within the disability-inclusive development agenda, and provided some best-practice examples and learnings for development practitioners. Panellists: Teresa Hall, University of Melbourne (Chair) Becca Allchin, Monash University Aleisha Carroll, CBM Australia Bhargavi Davar, Transforming Communities for Inclusion Helen Fernandes, TEAR Australia The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

On 29 March, Senator Richard Di Natale, Leader of the Australian Greens, launched the Australian Greens' full aid and development policy for the 2019 federal election at a public event at ANU.

Rapid advances in technology, including mobile communication, artificial intelligence, robotics, big data, psychographics, and biotech, are fundamentally changing economic, political, social, and security conditions in the Indo Pacific region. This panel discussed the impact all this is having on developing countries, and adjustments needed in development policy and practice. Panellists: Sakuntala Akmeemana, DFAT (Chair) William Cole, The Asia Foundation Yixiao Zhou, ANU John Karr, The Asia Foundation Klee Aiken, Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

MAMPU is the Australia-Indonesia Partnership for Women's Empowerment and Gender Equality. This panel featured key partners of MAMPU - Indonesian civil society organisations that champion women's issues - and discussed their strategies and approaches and the role of aid. Panellists: Amy Haddad, DFAT (Chair) Dina Lumbantobing, PERMAMPU (Women's NGO Consortium, Sumatra) Kate Shanahan, MAMPU Nani Zulminarni, Program Kepala Keluarga (Pekka) (Female-headed Households Program) The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

With the recent establishment of the Pacific Labour Scheme and Pacific Labour Facility, and the reorientation and rebadging of the Australia Pacific Training Coalition and Pacific Labour Facility, this panel provided the opportunity for a conversation about the complexities and opportunities that labour mobility provides for the Pacific region. Panellists: Kaye Schofield, Australia Pacific Training Coalition (Chair) Richard Curtain, Development Policy Centre, ANU Andie Fong Toy, Australia Pacific Training Coalition Alisi Holani, Tonga Ministry of Commerce Nick Volk, Pacific Labour Facility The 2019 Australasian Aid Conference was held at Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU, on 19-20 February, and was organised by the Development Policy Centre in partnership with The Asia Foundation.

The nature of work is changing as a result of advances in technology. The World Bank's 2019 World Development report studies this and argued that in light of the disruption from technological change, a new social contract is needed to smooth the transition and guard against rising inequality. Senior Director for Social Protection and Jobs, Michal Rutkowski, spoke at the Australian launch of this much anticipated report.

Tess Newton Cain interviews Sean Dorney, who was a Foreign Correspondent with the ABC for four decades, about his experiences in the Pacific and significant changes in the region, including in Australian reporting.

Governments and aid donors spend billions of dollars on active labour market programs and public works programs to improve the long term employability of youth by providing training, work placements and job searching assistance, and offer social protection through the creation of temporary employment opportunities. But how effective are these programs? In this public seminar at ANU on 20 September 2018, Chris Hoy presented the preliminary results of an impact evaluation of the largest employment program in Papua New Guinea - the Urban Youth Employment Program.

Transparency International's Global Corruption Barometer survey was recently piloted in Australia. Analysis of this, along with the Australian Research Council-funded National Integrity System Assessment of Australia, offers new insights into corruption. At this seminar on 13 September, A J Brown reviewed proposals for what should be involved in any new federal anti-corruption reforms.

Nena Stoiljkovic, the International Finance Corporation's Vice President for Asia and the Pacific, recently made her first visit to Australia in this role. On 23 August, she spoke at a seminar at ANU about IFC’s new strategy, its approaches to maximising finance for development and private sector investment, and its work in the Asia Pacific region.

Tess Newton Cain interviews Yasmine Bjornum, an activist for women's rights and empowerment in Vanuatu. They discussed Yasmine's background and journey thus far, including Sista, an online platform that provides content that aims to raise the visibility of women and their achievements in Vanuatu's society and economy.

The second plenary of the 2018 PNG Update, held on 14-15 June at the University of PNG, focused on economic developments in the country. Mr Ian Ling-Stuckey, Shadow Minister for Treasury and Finance, spoke on PNG's economy, and a team of ANU and UPNG researchers presented the ANU-UPNG PNG economic survey 2017-18.

PNG's Treasurer and Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Charles Abel, gave a keynote address at the 2018 PNG Update, held on 14-15 June at the University of PNG. He discussed the ANU-PNG relationship, opportunities for further connection through education, and PNG's political history and economic plans.

Digital technology has various uses and much potential, but how is it being used in PNG and what lessons can be learnt? This panel at the 2018 PNG Update, held at the University of PNG on 14-15 June, addressed this topic. Presenters spoke on market fee payment through custom-made software; electronic government; lessons from a Goilala ICT project; and whether a bank-led model is the best way to introduce digital financial services in emerging markets.

There are various challenges for governance and development in PNG. In this panel at the 2018 PNG Update, held on 14-15 June at the University of PNG, presenters discussed cultivating a participatory approach to governance; understanding youth perceptions; the deep determinants of district development; governance reform, leadership and support; and understanding governance in PNG.

The 2018 PNG Update was held at the University of PNG on 14-15 June. In this ANU-UPNG research showcase, we hear about some of the recent collaborative research by academics from the two universities, including on health phone services, decentralisation, the impact of family and sexual violence on education, infant industry protection, and health expenditure performance.

The Sustainable Development Goals are, in part, an encouragement for countries around the world to look after their environment and reduce the damage being done to ecosystems. This is particularly important in the Pacific, where many countries are resource-challenged. This panel at the 2018 Pacific Update, held in Suva on 5 and 6 July, made a valuable contribution to such discussions. It explored Pacific world heritage, how to implement environmental-economic accounting for sustainable resource use and development in the region, and compensation valuation approaches of ecosystem services and biodiversity of customary land resources and native fishing rights in Fiji.

Many countries are exploring ways to shift their energy sources from fossil fuels to renewable energy, but how do renewable energy ambitions affect donor-funded rural electrification efforts in Pacific Island countries? What is the experience of small island states when it comes to power sector reform? How can Fiji move towards a more sustainable future for its energy? These are some of the many questions answered in this panel on energy at the 2018 Pacific Update, held in Suva on 5 and 6 July.

Tourism contributes real resources to Pacific Island countries, but there is still much to be done. In this panel at the 2018 Pacific Update, held in Suva on 5 and 6 July. we heard about building an inclusive tourism sector, the tourism-growth nexus in Pacific Island countries, social capital in the region, and the role of crafts and souvenirs in Vanuatu and Solomon Islands.

As the occurrence of extreme environmental events increases due to climate change, how do households in Solomon Islands respond, and how does this relate to household net worth? This panel at the 2018 Pacific Update (held in Suva on 5 and 6 July) answered this question, and discussed negotiating a climate consensus and assessing climate finance readiness in the Asia-Pacific region.

Urban-to-urban forced displacement is misunderstood and under-prioritised, explained presenters on this panel at the 2018 Pacific Update, which was held in Suva on 5 and 6 July. This session described some outcomes on partnerships between aid actors, governments and the private sector, particularly how these partnerships resulted in certain outcomes for urban communities in the Pacific, as well as looking at the role of ethnic Fijian women in disaster management planning at the community level.

Small island developing states, particularly many Pacific Island countries, are considered to be among the most at-risk regions in the world from climate change. In this panel at the 2018 Pacific Update, held in Suva on 5 and 6 July, presenters discussed measuring the effectiveness of climate change adaptation at the community level; the neoliberal ecological modernisation framing of vulnerability and dispossession in the climate change agenda; evaluating climate change relocation in Fiji; and gender transformative climate change action.