Devpolicy Talks

Many young people are interested in a career in international development. Thousands volunteer in development organisations across the country, and development studies and international relations are some of the most popular undergraduate university courses in Australia. The appeal of a career that combines doing good with international travel is undeniable. But the popularity of the field also ma...

Voice and Agency: empowering women and girls for shared prosperity is a major new report by the World Bank that shines a spotlight on the value of empowerment, the patterns of constraints that limit their realization, and the associated costs, not only to individual women but to their families, communities, and societies. It highlights promising policies and interventions, and it identifies priori...

In this public seminar, Dr Jude Howell, Professor of International Development at London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), argued that the securitisation of NGOs post-9/11 has raised both practical issues about aid delivery and the security of NGO workers, as well as broader questions around the purpose of aid and development of civil society. Dr Jude Howell is Professor of Internat...

Based on Key Indicators 2014, a flagship publication of the Asian Development Bank, this presentation argued that conventional wisdom on poverty measurement fails to consider significant challenges of food insecurity, increasing inequality and rising vulnerability. Once these additional elements are brought in, the hope for an Asia free of poverty by 2020 looks unlikely. Instead, it is more likely...

Tess Newton Cain and Amanda Donigi, publisher of Stella magazine, met recently in Vanuatu. This is a recording of their conversation. Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/telling-stories-of-and-for-melanesian-women-an-interview-with-amanda-donigi-20140910/ Devpolicy Talks is the podcast of the Australian National University's Development Policy Centre.  Read and subscribe to our dai...

When they are surveyed, Australians appear to be supportive of aid work. Yet beyond the presence of nominal, high-level support, little is known about the nature of their support for aid, or the type of Australian most favourable to aid giving. Are aid supporters predominantly wealthy? Or religious? Or educated? Or young? And is support coupled with particular political or ideological beliefs? Eve...

In 2012, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) convened the Executive Council on Development—a bipartisan group of leaders from government, business, nongovernmental organisations, and philanthropy—to explore how the US government and private sector can work together to support the economic success of developing countries. In this public lecture, Daniel F Runde and Anna Saito C...

Women in Papua New Guinea are chronically under-represented in all levels of government and business and face barriers to achieving a tertiary education. Those who do succeed must navigate a male dominated workforce, while a small formal sector and rising unemployment limit opportunities. This event brought two prominent female professionals from Papua New Guinea to ANU to speak about their own ex...

Jonathan Pryke sits down with Andrew Leigh, the Federal Member for Fraser and Shadow Assistant Treasurer. Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/inequality-should-developing-countries-be-worried-an-interview-with-andrew-leigh-mp-20140724/ Devpolicy Talks is the podcast of the Australian National University's Development Policy Centre.  Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devpolic...

Tess Newton Cain sits down with Fred Samuel Tarisongtamate, the Government Chief Information Officer for Vanuatu. Devpolicy Talks is the podcast of the Australian National University's Development Policy Centre.  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...

Stephen O’Brien has been a Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom for nearly 15 years. For two and a half years from 2010 he was a development minister in the Department for International Development. He is currently the UK Prime Minister’s envoy to the Sahel. A few weeks ago Jonathan Pryke sat down with Stephen, who was visiting Canberra in his capacity as the Global Advocate for the Roll bac...

The PNG Update discussed and debated the latest economic and social developments in PNG. This event was multidisciplinary in nature. The conference presented papers from academics and practitioners on the following topics: PNG’s economic outlook Strategies to convert the resource boom into development Social issues in a booming economy Facilitating broad economic development – agriculture, fisheri...

The PNG Update discussed and debated the latest economic and social developments in PNG. This event was multidisciplinary in nature. The conference presented papers from academics and practitioners on the following topics: PNG’s economic outlook Strategies to convert the resource boom into development Social issues in a booming economy Facilitating broad economic development – agriculture, fisheri...

The 2014 Pacific Update consisted of two days of panel discussions, including country updates from around the Pacific and panel sessions on: aid to the Pacific; regionalism and the Pacific Plan Review; fisheries management; and skills and labour mobility. Ron Duncan is an Emeritus Professor at the Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU. More details on the Pacific Update can be found here: https://...

The 2014 Pacific Update consisted of two days of panel discussions, including country updates from around the Pacific and panel sessions on: aid to the Pacific; regionalism and the Pacific Plan Review; fisheries management; and skills and labour mobility. Yongzheng Yang is the IMF Resident Representative for Pacific Island Countries. Christopher Edmonds is Senior Economist, Pacific Department, ADB...

Alice Albright, CEO of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), was in Canberra in May to meet with the Australian Government ahead of its upcoming funding replenishment. Ms Albright has a long and distinguished career in finance and development, having worked as a banker, then spending eight years in GAVI until taking the role of COO of Exim Bank from 2009 to 2013. While she was in Canberra Jo...

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/ Devpolicy Talks is the podcast of the Australian National University's Development Policy Centre.  Rea...

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 committe...

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/ Devpolicy Talks is the podcast of the Australian National University's Development Policy Centre.  Read and subscribe to our daily blogs at devp...

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://devpol...

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 y...

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 y...

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...

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...

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. Devpolicy Talks is the podcast of the Australian National University's Development Policy Centre.  Read and subscribe t...