Latest Campaigns and Advocacy

International development agency Oxfam Australia will be watching tomorrow night’s budget to see if Australia remains on track to meeting its aid promise to the world’s poorest people.

The Close the Gap Campaign aims to close the ten to 17-year life-expectancy gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians’ within a generation. Founded in 2006, it marks its fifth anniversary today.

Co-chairs of the Close the Gap Campaign, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Mick Gooda and National Coordinator for Tackling Indigenous Smoking Dr Tom Calma, will today outline the crucial importance of ‘people power’ to Indigenous health equality.

It is no secret that Australia is seeking a seat on the UN Security Council, the body responsible for maintaining global peace and security. This would place Australia in the inner sanctum of the most powerful body of the UN, albeit without the veto rights of the five permanent members.

Campaigners today called on governments meeting at the United Nations to ensure no weapons or munitions are sold to human rights abusers. The call came as delegates meet this week in New York to resume negotiations on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), a legally-binding treaty to regulate the global arms trade.

As Australia’s aid program continues to grow – in line with the bi-partisan commitment for aid funding to reach half a per cent of our national income by 2015 – it will become even more important to make sure we are using this money effectively.

Relief agency calls on donor governments to allocate life-saving aid based on need not on short-term military gains

Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s announcement that she will work with the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples was welcomed by the Close the Gap Campaign today.

International development agency Oxfam Australia has urged the Coalition to drop its reported proposal to cut $373m in overseas aid to Africa.

Cancun is an important chapter in the epic story to tackle global climate change. If countries view Cancun as they should – a turning point from which to build from – the end of the book could well be in sight.