The Australian government has already assumed the role of regional sheriff and wants to sit astride a region of compliant states and micro-states. This means other countries markets and resources should be open to foreign capital without barriers such as the muscular protection of landowner rights, or strong environmental laws. Australia is targeting its aid spending to ensure Bougainville fits this model.
Whatever the future for Bougainville, Australia wants to ensure the island is a subservient neighbor providing a supporting role to Australia’s own economic and political interests. Australia is therefore targeting its aid spending to ensure that outcome, placing consultants in key political and financial roles and neglecting health and other people-centered sectors.
Australia’s emphasis is clearly demonstrated in new figures that show the breakdown of aid spending by Australia on consultants for the resource-rich island of Bougianville.
Figures released by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (see below) show that over 90% of $2.9 million per annum spent on the wages of consultant working for Australia on Bougainville is directed at ensuring Australian political structures, policy priorities, economic models, and security interests dominate in the new Bougainville government and bureaucracy.
In contrast, less than 9% of spending is targeted at health and HIV prevention and Australia is spending NOTHING on consultants for agriculture development, extension services to support self-sufficiency or women’s and youth programs.
In all, Australia is funding 22 consultant positions on Bougainville. Twenty-one of those consultants are working on governance, law and justice and mining programs.
Over half the consultants are working directly with government departments, writing legislation and advising on the drafting of policy, financial management and procurement.
This all means Australia in a powerful position to ensure its interests and those of its largest corporations are well taken care of in Bougainville’s future.
As a state-builder, Australia builds in its own image, and wants to ensure Melanesian countries act as stewards for foreign companies rather than as the protectors of their own citizens. As a result the people have already had to suffer at the hands of transnational corporations like Rio Tinto, BHP, Rimbunan Hijau and Exxon-Mobil – and it looks as if Bougainville will continue the trend…
