Chapter Ten: Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research
The Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) links Australian scientists with their counterparts in developing countries, so that they can work in partnership to address agreed priorities. ACIAR’s projects aim to improve livelihoods through more productive and sustainable agriculture, thereby supporting the aid program’s objective of reducing poverty and achieving sustainable development. As with the aid program, ACIAR research and development projects focus on Papua New Guinea, the Pacific, and South–East Asia.
In 2005–06, ACIAR’s appropriation will be $49.3 million. Three quarters of this budgeted expenditure will be directed to bilateral research that links Australian research institutions, both as project leaders and collaborators, with institutions in one or more developing countries. The remaining expenditure will be allocated to multilateral research, involving selected International Agricultural Research Centres (IARCs), through unrestricted grants and project-specific funding. IARCs will be selected on the basis of their comparative advantage in research activities targeting the Asia–Pacific region. Features of ACIAR’s expenditure in 2005–06 include:
- increased funding to Indonesia of $5.2 million (compared to $4.3 million in 2004–05), including funding to develop projects and training activities aimed at restoring the livelihoods of farmers and fishers in parts of Indonesia affected by the December 2004 Indian Ocean disaster;
- an increased investment in bilateral research in Papua New Guinea to $4.5 million (compared to $3.4 million in 2004‑05) and in the Pacific to $2.5 million ($2.1 million in 2004–05);
- reduced bilateral research expenditure in China, and increased co-investment by Chinese partners and other agencies in new projects;
- an increased number of projects targeting pilot-scale delivery of research outcomes to end users (farmers, natural resource managers and policymakers); and
- joint AusAID–ACIAR initiatives, including projects in Afghanistan, Cambodia, China, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines, accounting for $3.9 million of total research expenditure.