Out of Africa: deficit-cutting should start at home

It is unsurprising that these projects are the target of cuts, however. Foreign aid is inevitably the low-hanging fruit of deficit reduction. Its cancellation has no constituency to adversely affect. There will be no public outcry on the nightly news. And we can assume that the countries that benefit will not be sounding their vuvuzelas in anger. But we should not pretend that there are no victims. Indeed, scaling back our focus on Africa places Australia atop any such list.

Compared to a nation like Canada, Australia’s diplomatic footprint in Africa is pitifully small. Canada has 24 embassies or high commissions in Africa, Australia has just seven. Indeed, DFAT specifically outsources consular assistance for Australians to Canadian diplomats in many African countries. The missions that we do have in Africa are consequently over-stretched and under-resourced. The High Commission in Nairobi, for example, is expected to service seven different countries.

Africa has not always figured so lightly in Australia’s foreign policy. The Kenyan Foreign Minister, Moses Wetangula, noted as much when (in endorsing Australia’s bid) he reflected that it brought him “back to the good old days when Australia fought side by side with Africa in liberating our continent”. The legacy of Fraser and Hawke in opposing white rule in Southern Africa gave Australia moral credibility throughout the whole continent.

Improved relations with African countries also offer the opportunity to advance the commercial interests of Australian companies. Australian trade with Africa has grown rapidly in recent years. There are more than 400 Australian companies active in Africa, including some of our major resource companies, and over $20 billion of Australian investment. The recent plane crash involving Macarthur Coal’s Ken Talbot and other Australian mining executives on the Cameroon-Congo border was a tragic emblem of the newfound investment focus on Africa.

In human terms, Australia hosts 250,000 citizens born in Africa and hosts more than 10,000 African students. Most critically, the trend line of these connections is ever upward.

The perceived smallness of the issues of the election can be interpreted positively as a sign that Australia remains a well-governed, prosperous country with only trivial miscellany to decide votes. We should be proud to export our skills and know-how to the countries that need it most. Or at least explain why we won’t.