Tess Newton Cain sits down with Elise Huffer, culture Adviser for the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), where she works on the Human Development Program. Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/cultural-economics-elise-huffer-discusses-opportunities-for-the-pacific-20140519/ Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest upd...
Jun 02, 2015•19 min•Season 3Ep. 16
Mel Dunn, URS and IDC Australia; Professor Stephen Howes, Development Policy Centre; Joanna Lindner, Australian Council For International Development; Dr Anthony Swan, Development Policy Centre. The Australian aid budget has doubled in the past decade, but with the change of government in September, this unprecedented growth has now been brought to a grinding halt. While the Coalition has committed to keep aid around the $5 billion mark in real terms, it remains to be seen whether this commitmen...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 24 min•Season 3Ep. 15
Tess Newton Cain sits down with Colin Tukuitonga the new Director General of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC). Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/what-does-the-future-hold-for-spc-an-interview-with-colin-tukuitonga-20140320/ Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs, research and events. Yo...
Jun 02, 2015•18 min•Season 3Ep. 14
Paul Brockmann is the outgoing Head of Mission for Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) in Papua New Guinea, focusing on providing medical and psychosocial care for survivors of family and sexual violence. Ashlee Betteridge caught up with Paul during his recent visit to Canberra to discuss MSF’s work in PNG and the challenges facing the health sector more broadly. Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/pngs-violence-epidemic-and-the-medical-response-in-conversation-with-msfs-paul-brockmann-201...
Jun 02, 2015•28 min•Season 3Ep. 13
In recent months, the Office of Development Effectiveness, the unit within DFAT that’s responsible for the evaluation of Australia’s aid program, has released three important reports. One is its evaluation of the Australian aid volunteer program. The other are two reports on aid program quality: its review of aid program performance reports, and its Lessons from Australian Aid report. As in past years, the Development Policy Centre hosted a forum to discuss and debate these reports. Presenters i...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 30 min•Season 3Ep. 12
In recent months, the Office of Development Effectiveness, the unit within DFAT that’s responsible for the evaluation of Australia’s aid program, has released three important reports. One is its evaluation of the Australian aid volunteer program. The other are two reports on aid program quality: its review of aid program performance reports, and its Lessons from Australian Aid report. As in past years, the Development Policy Centre hosted a forum to discuss and debate these reports. Presenters i...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 56 min•Season 3Ep. 11
A part of the 2014 Asia and the Pacific Policy Society Conference 2014 organised by the Development Policy Centre on infrastructure reforms. Presentations were: The political economy of utility regulation: the case of Vanuatu - James Ryan, Chief Economist, Utilities Regulatory Authority of Vanuatu The Asian experience with energy subsidies and reform - Dr Shikha Jha, Principal Economist, Economics and Research Department, Asian Development Bank Road infrastructure maintenance: lessons from Afric...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 29 min•Season 3Ep. 10
Over 20 per cent of people in Pacific Island Countries (PICS) live in hardship, meaning they are unable to meet their basic needs. Increasing risks from natural and economic shocks also mean many traditional safety nets may not be as effective as they have been in the past. Two new reports shed light on these issues both in the Pacific and worldwide, the World Development Report for 2014, Risk and Opportunity: Managing Risk for Development and a new World Bank report, sponsored by the Australian...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 27 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Serena Sumanop is the Executive Director of The Voice Inc, a home-grown Papua New Guinean NGO working to empower young people to contribute to their communities and to development. During her recent visit to Canberra Ashlee Betteridge caught up with Serena to talk about PNG. Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs...
Jun 02, 2015•18 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Tess Newton Cain sits down with Astrid Boulekone, General Manager of the Vanuatu Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Blog available here: http://devpolicy.org/pacific-conversations-private-sector-development-in-vanuatu-with-astrid-boulekone-20140306/ Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs, research and events. You ...
Jun 02, 2015•22 min•Season 3Ep. 7
Sir Fazle Hasan Abed is the Founder and Chairperson of BRAC, the world's largest NGO. https://crawford.anu.edu.au/devpolicy/events Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs, research and events. You can send us feedback, and ideas for episodes too, to devpolicy@anu.edu.au....
Jun 02, 2015•31 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Frances Seymour is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development based in Washington, DC, and a Senior Advisor to the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. In her keynote address, she argued that, while reducing forest loss will depend on domestic political will and profound institutional and governance changes in forest countries, there are also options available to rich country governments, corporations, and citizens to accelerate progressive reform. The actions she outlined and recommen...
Jun 02, 2015•53 min•Season 3Ep. 5
This plenary session provided updates and new analysis of aid from three emerging superpowers – China, India and Brazil – from three leading experts. Dr. Rani Mullen is Director, Indian Development Cooperation Research and Senior Visiting Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi. Dr. Tongquan Sun is an Associate Professor at the Rural Development Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) where he researches Chinese and international development assistance. Dr Sean B...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 30 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Roger Ridell is an associate at Oxford Policy Management and is a development and aid specialist with some 40 years’ experience. His 2008 book Does Foreign Aid Really Work? was the first attempt in more than 20 years to survey the evidence around whether aid actually works. Roger’s keynote address provided an updated assessment on aid’s impact, discussed what impact we ought to expect aid to have and outlined ways in which its impact could be improved. A summary blog of his speech, which include...
Jun 02, 2015•48 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Julie Bishop, Minister for Foreign Affairs, delivered the opening address at the 2014 Australasian Aid and Development Policy Workshop. A transcript of her speech is available here: http://foreignminister.gov.au/speeches/2014/jb_sp_140213.html Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs, research and events. You can s...
Jun 02, 2015•48 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Tess Newton Cain sits down with Kolone Vaai, Principal Consultant at KVAConsult Ltd and former Financial Secretary for the Government of Samoa (1984-1990). Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/pacific-conversations-the-economy-of-samoa-with-kolone-vaai-20140122/ Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs, r...
Jun 02, 2015•24 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In July and August 2013 the Development Policy Centre surveyed 356 stakeholders in the Australian aid program, from the senior executives of Australia’s biggest NGOs and development contracting companies, to the officials of multilateral, partner government and Australian government agencies. The survey asked them what they thought about the Australian aid program, what they liked, what they didn’t like, what they thought the future of aid was and what needed to be done to improve our aid. And n...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 25 min•Season 2Ep. 48
As troops withdraw and aid declines, this is a critical period of transition for Afghanistan. At this forum, the speakers questioned what has been achieved to date. The event also included the Australia launch of The Asia Foundation’s Survey of the Afghan People 2013. This is the biggest public opinion poll in Afghanistan, covering all 34 provinces. Through face-to-face interviews, over 9,000 Afghan citizens revealed their opinions on security, political participation, the economy, women’s right...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 35 min•Season 2Ep. 47
Ashlee Betteridge sits down with Daisy Plana to discuss her new role as the Senior Social Worker and first CEO of the PNG Family and Sexual Violence Case Management Centre (CMC).The CMC is a newly registered NGO, currently in the set-up phase. Blog available here: http://devpolicy.org/moving-beyond-the-medical-for-family-and-sexual-violence-survivors-in-png-20131212/ You can read about the rationale for the CMC here: http://devpolicy.org/responding-to-family-and-sexual-violence-in-png-the-case-f...
Jun 02, 2015•24 min•Season 2Ep. 46
The Pacific region is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, which carry the risk of significant economic costs. The Asian Development Bank’s report on the economics of climate change in the Pacific aims to raise the level of understanding of all sectors and stakeholders on possible impacts of climate change, with analyses that lead to regional strategies supported by national programs linked to local policies and activities. It focuses on Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomo...
Jun 02, 2015•55 min•Season 2Ep. 45
The unfolding crisis in Syria has left more than eight million people displaced from their homes. Cut off from vital services, desperately in need of water, food and health care, today an entire generation of Syrians are teetering on the brink. How does the international community respond to such a crisis? Luciano Calestini, currently coordinating UNICEF’s humanitarian response in Lebanon where more than 800,000 refugees are struggling to survive, provided a unique insight into the heart of one ...
Jun 02, 2015•27 min•Season 2Ep. 44
Tess Newton Cain sits down with Odo Tevi, who was Governor of the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu for the last 15 years, to discuss the Vanuatu economy. Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/in-conversation-with-odo-tevi-on-the-vanuatu-economy-20131329/ Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs, research and events...
Jun 02, 2015•20 min•Season 2Ep. 43
The small states of the Asia and Pacific region face unique challenges in raising their growth potential and living standards relative to other small states due to their small populations, geographical isolation and dispersion, narrow export and production bases, exposure to shocks, and heavy reliance on aid. Higher fixed government costs, low access to credit by the private sector, and capacity constraints are also key challenges. The econometric analysis confirms that the Pacific Island Countr...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 28 min•Season 2Ep. 42
After decades of poor economic performance, Africa is doing much better, with higher economic growth. Why? What role did aid play? And what are the lessons for the Pacific? Jim Adams knows both Africa and the Pacific well. In the 2014 Harold Mitchell Development Policy Lecture, he focussed on how effective economic reform emerged in Africa and related institutional and capacity issues. Drawing on this and his Pacific experience, he reviewed a number of proposals that could be taken by donors in ...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 2 min•Season 2Ep. 41
The most serious problems that developing countries face are increasingly international in nature. Climate change, water scarcity, communicable diseases, food insecurity and the depletion of forests and fisheries—all these things call for cooperation at the regional or global levels, as well as action at the national level. Such cooperation is often mediated by international organisations and much of it is funded by aid. But global aid is shrinking in this era of austerity and international orga...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 22 min•Season 2Ep. 40
Tess Newton Cain sits down with Katy Leroy, a constitutional lawyer who has lived on Nauru for seven years. Until very recently she was Parliamentary Counsel for Nauru with responsibility for drafting legislation and advising the Speaker of Parliament and parliamentary committees. A full transcript of the interview is available here: http://devpolicy.org/pacific-conversations/6.%20Transcript%20of%20interview%20with%20Katy%20Le%20Roy.docx Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/nauru-polit...
Jun 02, 2015•24 min•Season 2Ep. 39
Throughout the developing world, millions of people lack access to safe water and improved sanitation, which has high social and economic costs. The World Bank’s Water and Sanitation Program (WSP) has been advising client governments on the effective engagement of domestic private sector in the delivery of services and the development of water and sanitation markets that cater to the poor. In this public event, Ms Jaehyang So and Bob Warner presented the findings of the WSP’s recently published ...
Jun 02, 2015•59 min•Season 2Ep. 38
Oxfam's Duncan Green speaks with Devpolicy's Associate Director Robin Davies about the realities of doing development in complex systems. Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolicy.org. Learn more about our research and join our public events at devpolicy.anu.edu.au. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for latest updates on our blogs, research and events. You can send us feedback, and ideas for episodes too, to devpolicy@anu.edu.au....
Jun 02, 2015•6 min•Season 2Ep. 37
How do we plan, campaign and work in development when we don’t know what is going to happen and we don’t know what solutions will work? Aid professionals know that real life has a way of ignoring our plans and procedures, but often we block out that knowledge in order to keep functioning. In this talk, Duncan Green asks what would we do differently, if we acknowledge and try to adapt to the messiness of reality. Dr Duncan Green is Senior Strategic Adviser at Oxfam GB, Honorary Professor of Inter...
Jun 02, 2015•51 min•Season 2Ep. 36
Until recently, discussions on a new post-2015 framework to succeed the Millennium Development Goals mostly revolved around general principles or else very particular features of a possible landscape. Now, several proposals for an integrated post-2015 agenda have emerged. Most prominent among these is the illustrative framework offered by the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel (HLP) of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda. Robin Davies gave a comparative assessment of the fra...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 4 min•Season 2Ep. 35
