AusAID
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| Agency overview | |
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| Preceding agencies |
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| Headquarters | Canberra, ACT, Australia |
| Employees | 1,652 (at April 2013) |
| Minister responsible |
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| Agency executive |
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| Website | DFAT, Australian Aid |
AusAID, formally the Australian Agency for International Development, is the Australian organisation responsible for delivering most non-military foreign aid. It is an autonomous Commonwealth agency within the portfolio of the Minister for Foreign Affairs. While an independent agency under the Financial Management and Accountability Act, it is part of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for the purposes of the Public Service Act which covers human resources and non-financial accountability. It is based in the national capital, Canberra, and has representation in 25 Australian diplomatic missions overseas.
As a public service agency, AusAID provides policy advice and implements the overseas aid policy of the Australian government of the day. The current overall objective - last refined in the Howard Government's White Paper, Australian Aid: Promoting Growth and Stability, but essentially unchanged since 1997 - is "to assist developing countries to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable development, in line with Australia's national interest."
Among the agency's stated subsidiary goals are improving health and education services, fighting corruption, improving security, engaging in the fight against HIV/AIDS and improving the effectiveness of government organisations through training and other assistance. It actively works with the United Nations and the World Bank, as well as a variety of non-government organisations, such as the Australian Red Cross and World Vision in order to co-ordinate the delivery of aid services.
The agency has seen a variety of names and formats. It was founded in 1974 under the Whitlam Labor government as the Australian Development Assistance Agency (ADAA) to fulfill a role that had previously been the responsibility of several departments. It was renamed the Australian Development Assistance Bureau (ADAB) and brought under the Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio in 1976 under the Fraser Liberal government. It became the Australian International Development Assistance Bureau (AIDAB) under the Hawke government in 1987, before being given its current name by the Keating government in 1995.
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