The Government will provide $93.2 million over four years to improve Australia's capacity to respond to humanitarian and emergency crises in the Asia-Pacific region.
Funding will be used to increase the Government's and partners' state of readiness, and to improve risk analysis and contingency planning.
As recent earthquakes and tsunamis in Solomon Islands show, development gains in Asia-Pacific countries are susceptible to the adverse shocks of natural and human-made disasters. These events cost lives and undermine growth prospects.
Stronger partner capacity in the region will complement improvements in Australia's own response capacity. Therefore, additional funding will be used to assist partner countries to plan for and manage crises themselves.
The aid programme will also invest more heavily in risk assessment and preparing for high-risk scenarios, recognising that prevention is an effective means to save lives and reduce financial costs.
Media Inquiries: Mr Downer's office 02 6277 7500 - AusAID (Public Affairs) 0417 680 590