6 MONTHS IN:

WHAT'S OUR-NEW GOVERNMENT'S TRACK RECORD FOR DISPLACED PEOPLE

With the number of people displaced by conflict and disaster globally now surpassing a record 100 million, our leaders have important decisions to make about what role Australia will play to help tackle the mounting displacement crisis. After six months in the driver's seat, here's how Albanese's Government is tracking.

Written by James Thomson, Senior Policy and Protection Advisor, Act for Peace

A BUDGET WHICH WENT BEYOND

All eyes were on the Government as it handed down its first revised Budget in October 2022, with a key question being: "how will Australia respond to the multiple crises going on around the world?"  In good news, the Government went beyond its pre­ election commitment, promising to invest an additional $1.4 billion over four years in international development assistance.

This includes an increase in funding to support our neighbours in the Pacific and Timor Leste, on the frontline of the climate crisis, by an additional $900 million over the next four years. As the Treasurer expressed, this marks an important step in restoring Australia's role as a "dependable partner and friend" to our Pacific neighbours.

It also stuck to its commitment to provide an additional $470 minion for Southeast Asia, and provide $382 million for aid and development work in South and West Asia.

These investments, in addition to an extra $30 million towards the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP) and a new Development Policy to guide the development program, demonstrate a more global and long-term focus in Australia's approach to foreign aid. This is a necessary shift to help tackle the global displacement crisis at large.

A COP TO REMEMBER

With the number of people displaced by climate related disasters predicted to surpass 200 million by 2050, stakes were high at the UN's COP27 conference in Egypt in November 2022.

The first COP since the Federal Government legislated Australia's updated 2030 and 2050 decarbonisation targets, there was a noticeable improvement in Australia's level of engagement at the conference compared to previous years.

On paper, the Government committed to several decarbonisation and climate resilience-focused initiatives at COP27, including the International Net Zero Government Initiative, which commits governments to achieve net zero emissions across their operations by 2030, and the Ocean Conservation Pledge, which calls on countries to conserve 30% of their ocean jurisdiction by 2030.

The conference concluded with the announcement of a historic loss and damage fund - a huge win for our ACT Alliance representatives who attended and advocated for this initiative, including staging a wedding skit between 'climate finance' and 'political will' out the front of the conference. The biggest winners of all, of course, are our partners and communities on the climate crisis frontline whose calls for support are finally getting traction.

While COP27 was a step in the right direction for Australia's climate agenda, our fossil fuel exports remain amongst the highest in the world. There's a lot more action to be taken for the Government to truly 'walk their talk' and get to 1.5C.

HELP.ING TO FIGHT FAMINE

Through the Help Fight Famine campaign, Act for Peace and other members of Micah Australia have been advocating for the Australian Government to commit to $150 million to combat rising hunger and expected famine in parts of the world, including the Horn of Africa, Yemen, Myanmar, Afghanistan and Syria.

In August 2022, the Government responded and committed $15 million to support countries bearing the brunt of the hunger crisis. But despite continuous calls from the humanitarian sector, no further funding has been announced since.

We champion the progress the Government has made so far for displacement-affected people, which is a testament to the joint advocacy you have supported through campaigns like Help Fight Famine.

However, the global hunger crisis and climate emergency will only become more dire as the months and years go on, so it is vital the Australian Government acts with more urgency to transform the system and do our part to share responsibility for the displacement crisis.

TOGETHER, WE'RE TRANSFORMING THE  SYSTEM  BY:

• Learning from displaced people, forming broad networks, and standing together for collective influence.
• Influencing regional, national, and global authorities to share responsibility, resources, and power equitably; and act on climate and conflicts.