Financed entirely by eleven donors, the World Bank-administered Emergency Services Support Program (ESSP) Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) provided key financing for the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) social sector emergency program. This program was successfully implemented, despite the difficult security context, and benefited the entire Palestinian population in the West Bank and Gaza. At the conclusion of the project, public facilities continued to operate at the same or higher levels than the 2007 baselines.

Challenge

Speaking in the Senate, Foreign Minister Bob Carr today said the lead-up to CHOGM offers an opportunity for the Commonwealth to highlight areas that require progress in Sri Lanka, and offer practical assistance where appropriate.

Senator Carr said engagement, not isolation, is the most effective way to promote human rights, the rule of law and democratic governance in Sri Lanka. For this reason, the Australian Government has reaffirmed it will attend CHOGM in Sri Lanka.

"I will continue to urge progress on human rights in Sri Lanka," Senator Carr said.

05/16/2013 09:39 GMT

SYDNEY, May 16, 2013 (AFP) - Australia on Thursday extended tough refugee policies to any asylum-seeker who lands on its mainland, allowing them to be banished to remote Nauru or Papua New Guinea for detention.

Until now, the government only had powers to send boatpeople for indefinite detention in the Pacific when they reached its remote offshore territories such as Christmas Island.

The change, which was passed in parliament Thursday, strips away any advantage asylum-seekers get from reaching the mainland.

The Australian Government congratulates Pakistan and its people on the successful completion of its elections on May 11, 2013.

These elections will see the first transfer of power from one democratically elected civilian government to another in the country's 66 year history.

The Australian Government is encouraged by the high voter turnout, especially among women, despite threats of violence from some terrorist groups during the election campaign.

The Gillard Government will increase Australia's Official Development Assistance to a record $5.7 billion in 2013-14.

This is an increase of approximately $500 million or 9.6 per cent on 2012-13 and brings the aid budget to 0.37 per cent of gross national income (GNI).

It will be the highest aid budget in Australian history.

It occurs at a time when aid among OECD countries has fallen by 4 per cent in real terms (over 2012).

Australia remains committed to increasing its aid budget to 0.5 per cent of GNI.

An Australia–Malaysia partnership is creating change through education in Afghanistan

A partnership between Australia and Malaysia is improving the quality of education in Afghanistan by revitalising the learning environment in its teacher-training colleges.

Updated 8 May 2013, 10:30 AEST

There's no relief in sight for the drought affected region of the northern Marshall Islands.

And as the rain holds off conditions will only get worse.

An estimated 5,000 people in the northern atolls are experiencing severe drought conditions with an additional 11,000 people affected by crop loss due tio the lack of rain.

Drinking water is being rationed and there's no water for bathing or other domestic purposes.

UNICEF Australia has welcomed the call from Australia’s business leaders for Australia’s major parties to commit to giving 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income as aid by 2016.

A public letter published today calls for a bipartisan commitment to Australia's aid budget and is backed by prominent business people from Qantas, Macquarie Bank, IKEA, the likes of former Australian of the Year and Macquarie Group executive chairman Simon McKeon.

The Australian aid program was recognised for its global leadership on disability-inclusive approaches in humanitarian settings at an event in New York on 2 May 2013.

The prestigious ‘Voices of Courage’ award was presented to Australia’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Mr Gary Quinlan, by the Women’s Refugee Commission, an international non-government organisation that seeks to advance the rights and dignity of refugees. Two former refugees, Dahabo Hassan Maow and Atim Caroline Ogwang Atanga, also shared their stories and received awards.