Formation and function

On 14 August 1987 the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr Bill Hayden, announced in News Release No: M102 that as of 17 August 1987 the Australian Development Assistance Bureau (ADAB) will be known as the Australian International Development Assistance Bureau (AIDAB), the minor alteration of the title to better reflect the nature of the Bureau's work which comprises the management of Australia's overseasaid program.

The Bureau is controlled by a Director-General of Deputy Secretary level who is responsible to the Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade having direct access to the Minister. The Commonwealth Government Directory, Volume 2 (Foreign Affairs portfolio), 1986, pp 7-8 recorded the Bureau's history, role and structure as follows:

The Australian Development Assistance Bureau (ADAB) was originally established as a statutory authority in 1974 by the Australian Development Assistance Agency Act. This Act integrated under one authority aspects of aid programs previously administered by the Departments of Foreign Affairs, External Territories, Education, Labour and National Service and the Treasury.

The legislation was repealed in 1977 and the former agency became an autonomous bureau established within the (former) Department of Foreign Affairs. The Bureau advises the Minister for Foreign Affairs (and Trade) on matters relating to aid for developing countries, administers Australian aid and carries out such other functions in connection with aid for developing countries as the Minister approves. It is responsible for formulating overall aid policy, and for appraising, administering and evaluating the aid program.

The Bureau's responsibilities are distributed between three divisions. It also maintains regional offices in all States which deal primarily with the development of training programs and overseas students.

The Policy, Planning and Management Division has three branches: Policy; Appraisal, Evaluation and Sectoral Studies; and Financial and Resource Management. It is responsible for research, development, co-ordination and review of overall aid policy; corporate planning and budgetary processes necessary to link agreed policy and available resources; central program quality control, including appraisal, evaluation and effectiveness review and feedback to the relevant areas in the Bureau as well as the provision of sectoral advice to other areas of the Bureau; and provision of ADP capability, finance management, statistical, personnel and other resource management and library services to the rest of the Bureau.

The Country Programs Division has three branches: Pacific and South-East Asia; and Asia, Africa and Bilateral Co-ordination. It is responsible for the programming, implementation, monitoring and co-ordination of all aspects of the bilateral aid program. Integrated country programs for individual recipients are developed and implemented in the Division under the direction of country managers. Assistance through regional organisations is also managed in the Division.

The Community, Commercial and International Programs Division also has three branches: Contracts and Commercial Programs; Community Programs and Students; and International Organisations and Programs. It is responsible for the development, management and monitoring of international aid programs, including major international financial institutions, Commonwealth and UN bodies involved in aid, and sectoral international aid bodies. It co-ordinates private-sector involvement in all aspects of aid delivery, including the management of commercially oriented programs such as the Development Import Finance Facility. It arranges consultant and contracting services and manages the procurement function for the whole aid program; oversees the food aid program and monitors and advises on overseas student issues, including the role played by AIDAB's own training centre, the International Training Institute at Mosman, Sydney. The Division is also responsible for community organisation's involvement in the official aid program and for relevant academic research through administration of research grants. It co-ordinates disaster and refugee programs and is responsible for AIDAB's public information and development education programs.

There are two advisory committees connected with AIDAB. The AIDAB- Non-Government Organisations (NGO) Committee for Development Co-operation is a joint government-NGO body, set up by government direction in 1974, to advise on the ADAB-NGO Project Subsidy Scheme, under which assistance is provided for the overseas development activities of Australian NGOs. It advises on the eligibility of organisations and projects for government subsidies and recommends policy for joint government-NGO activities. The International Training Institute Advisory Council was set up under ministerial direction in 1977 to advise on training courses, directed towards the needs of developing countries, to be conducted at the International Training Institute in Mosman as part of Australia's aid program.

Historical agency address

AusAID House, 62 Northbourne Avenue, Canberra ACT 2600

Abolition

The Government announced that AusAID would be abolished and the functions transferred to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade with effect from 1 November 2013.