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<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333"><font
size="6"><b>A win in the struggle for aid transparency</b></font></font></p>
<font color="#333333"><br>
Dear Subscriber,</font>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">After
many
years of campaigning, writing submissions and lobbying by
AID/WATCH, the Australian Government has finally agreed to
measures that will help make the Australian Aid program more
transparent. Your support has been crucial to this. </font> </p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">On
the
24</font><font color="#333333"><sup>th</sup></font><font
color="#333333"> November 2011 the Australian Government
announced the Australian aid program </font><font
color="#0000ff"><u><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.ausaid.gov.au/country/pdf/ausaid-transparency-charter.pdf">Transparency
Charter</a></u></font><font color="#333333">. This charter
commits the government to publish detailed information on AusAID
programs and projects, including research and evaluations that
will help organizations like AID/WATCH track where Australian
aid money is going and how it is being spent. </font> </p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">Although
the
concept of publishing details on taxpayer funded aid programs is
hardly rocket science, until now little detailed information has
been made publicly available. </font><font color="#0000ff"><u><a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.publishwhatyoufund.org/resources/index/2011-index/">A
recent study</a></u></font><font color="#333333"> by
campaign group Publish What You Fund have found Australian aid
transparency to be so ‘poor’ that they ranked 36</font><font
color="#333333"><sup>th</sup></font><font color="#333333"> out
of 58 donors behind Lithuania and the Czech Republic and scored
a transparency rating of only 26%.</font></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">A
key part of the AID/WATCH </font><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.aidwatch.org.au/sites/aidwatch.org.au/files/AIDWATCH%20submission%20AidReview.pdf"><font
color="#0000ff"><u>submission to the </u></font><font
color="#0000ff"><u><i>Review on Aid Effectiveness</i></u></font></a><font
color="#333333"> pushed for the </font><font color="#262626">release
of up-to-date and detailed information about all aid
programs, projects and initiatives to the public in a timely and
accessible manner, in order to improve the transparency and
accountability of AusAID.</font></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333"><font
size="4"><b>But our work isn’t over yet…</b></font></font></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">As
documents
start to be published to the AusAID website, AID/WATCH
congratulates the Government on this new approach but cautions
there is more work to be done in order for Australian aid to be
fully transparent and accountable, including meeting its
commitments under the </font><font color="#0000ff"><u><a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.aidtransparency.net/">International Aid
Transparency Initiative</a></u></font><font color="#333333">.
</font> </p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">AID/WATCH
are
also concerned that the Government has continued to link
Australia’s aid program to “advancing Australia’s national
interest” instead of a complete commitment to reducing poverty.
This focus in the past has seen aid dollars being poured into
corporate welfare and neoliberal reforms that have harmed the
people who need help the most. </font> </p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">As
the
aid program is ramped up due to a significant increase in the
aid budget, it is vital that AID/WATCH continues its work
monitoring and campaigning AusAID to ensure that Australian aid
policies have a genuine pro-poor focus and work with, rather
than for or against communities. </font> </p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">The
release
of project documents, evaluations and concept papers won’t mean
much if organizations like AID/WATCH aren’t able to analyse them
and hold AusAID to account on behalf of communities in the
Global South. </font> </p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333"><font
size="4"><b>What you can do</b></font></font></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#333333">AID/WATCH
is
the only independent monitor of Australian aid money. Help
AID/WATCH continue our vital work to ensure this aid money
directed where it is most needed.</font></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font color="#0000ff"><u><a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.egive.org.au/website/index.php">Donate or
become a member</a></u></font><font color="#333333"> today!
</font> </p>
<br>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><font color="#000000">AID/WATCH<br>
19 Eve St. Erskineville,<br>
NSW 2043 Australia<br>
Ph: +61 2 9557 8944<br>
Fax: +61 2 9557 9822</font></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; widows: 0; orphans: 0"><font
color="#000000"><a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:info@aidwatch.org.au">info@aidwatch.org.au</a> <br>
<u><a moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://www.aidwatch.org.au/">www.aidwatch.org.au</a></u></font></p>
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