The number in the federal budget most Australians get wrong

The Albanese government is spending just 0.68 per cent of the federal budget on international humanitarian aid – around half the proportion of a decade ago.

Polling, meanwhile, reveals most Australians assume a much bigger share of federal spending is allocated to assisting poorer nations than is the case.

Australia spends a much smaller share of the federal budget on overseas aid than a decade ago.Credit: Louise Kennerley

International aid spending as a share of the federal budget last peaked in 2012 at 1.28 per cent but is on track to hit a record low 0.66 per cent next financial year. That compares with 1.14 per cent of the budget spent on aid during the later years of the Howard government and 1.6 per cent during the Hawke Labor government.

A survey by research firm Redbridge found one in four respondents assumed 3 per cent or more of the budget was allocated to foreign aid while one in 12 said the proportion was over 10 per cent. In all, 53 per cent of respondents overestimated budget spending while a further 32 per cent were unsure. Only 14.4 per cent correctly estimated that less than 1 per cent of the budget was spent on aid.

Redbridge director Kos Samaras said many survey respondents were surprised when told the true share of the budget allocated to international aid.

“When we explain to Australians that only about 0.7 per cent of the total federal budget is spent on aid they’re quite alarmed,” he said. “Most of them had the view that it was much, much larger.”

A third of respondents said the federal government was spending “too little” on international humanitarian aid and 67 per cent did not support further reductions.

Federal aid spending has been repeatedly cut during the past decade despite the growing influence of China in the Asia-Pacific region.

The Safer World for All campaign, which commissioned the polling, is calling for aid spending to be lifted to 1 per cent of the federal budget, a level last achieved in 2014-15. The campaign is co-ordinated by the Australian Council for International Development and advocacy group Micah Australia.

Micah national director Matt Darvas said: “What we’re asking for is a modest yet transformative step that would not only solidify Australia’s leadership in our region but also equip us to meet global challenges head-on, fostering a safer and more resilient world – one that has the support of Australians when they realise just how low our aid budget has fallen.”

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has promised Labor will “rebuild” Australia’s international development program over time. While the trajectory of aid spending is higher than forecast under the previous Coalition government, it is predicted to flat-line in real terms for the foreseeable future.

“Avoiding cuts, while commendable, is not the same as rebuilding,” said ANU aid expert professor Stephen Howes.

Australia spends 0.19 per cent of gross national income on foreign aid, making it the 26th most generous donor among wealthy members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). That figure is down from a ranking of ninth in 1995.

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