In New South Wales, study of Australia’s foreign aid and international treaty obligations complement courses in Australian History and Australian Geography.
Recently, several student leaders and staff from Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School attended a presentation by Minister for Foreign Affairs, Kevin Rudd.
“It’s the Australian nature to give a fair go for all,” said Mr Rudd, while addressing a gathering of over 200 people in Banora Point.
Mr Rudd spoke of Australia’s role in providing foreign aid to countries in need. He said that one per cent of Australia’s annual Federal Government Budget goes toward humanitarian and development projects overseas. “Australians ask what they can do, and are big-hearted enough to manage this financial commitment,” Mr Rudd said.
“Australia’s key foreign aid objective is to save people’s lives through improved health care, education, food security and dealing with emergencies,” Mr Rudd said.
Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School Year 10 student, Penelope Meeves, asked Mr Rudd if education about contraception was part of Australia’s aid program for developing countries experiencing rapid population growth.
In response, Mr Rudd replied that “the key to reducing high rates of fertility is to improve the health, education and economic opportunities of those families in poorer nations who may have up to six children, knowing that two or three may die during childhood”.
“We have to get the kids to survive until age five, then get them into school. This is being achieved by partnerships between governments, non-government relief agencies and private sector businesses,” Mr Rudd said.
Mr Rudd spoke of Australia’s contribution to efforts aimed at reducing the incidence of HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and malaria in Papua New Guinea and the success of the ‘Seeds for Life’ program in East Timor, which has increased food harvests by 30-100 per cent.
Mr Rudd spoke of the emerging humanitarian crisis occurring in the horn of Africa region due to drought where up to one million people may die of starvation.
“Australia is the third largest donor to the international effort in this region. Increasingly, Australia’s input and expertise is being sought around the world’s ‘big tables’ due to the generosity of Australians,” Mr Rudd said.
“Globally $2.4 billion needs to be raised. The Australian Government has pledged to match dollar for dollar, donations made to World Vision to assist in this crisis,” he said.
Mr Rudd said that currently, people from the Tweed region were involved in twenty humanitarian projects worldwide.
After the presentation, Mr Rudd took time to chat to Lindisfarne staff and student leaders. School Captain Paris Manson shared with Mr Rudd that she had recently returned from walking the Kokoda Trail in Papua New Guinea and had seen first-hand the poverty of some areas.
Mr Rudd was interested in her experiences and said that, he too, had found walking the Kokoda Trail “very challenging”.
