“The superfluous wealth of rich countries should be placed at the service of poor nations. The rule which up to now held good for the benefit of those nearest to us, must today be applied to all the needy of this world.”
Government's New Funding Schemes for NGOs
The Government has announced its guidelines for funding development NGOs under the new Sustainable Development Fund (SDF - for long-term development work) and the Humanitarian Relief Fund (HRF - for emergency relief work). However, there are still many unanswered questions about the funds, and Caritas is concerned about the impact for our partners and poor people overseas.
Caritas and other development NGOs have written to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) seeking clarification, while working hard to put forward proposals for the first round of funding under the SDF. Read about our concerns at: Goalposts keep shifting for overseas aid funding (22 July 2010).
Read earlier material on changes to New Zealand's overseas aid policy:
The PointSeven Campaign
Caritas is part of the 0.7 campaign, asking New Zealand to raise its overseas aid levels to 0.7 of Gross National Income by 2015 - in line with an international commitment made 35 years. New Zealand has never even come close. While a lot of work has been done to build a strong poverty focus for New Zealand's aid, our current aid is 0.30 percent of Gross National Income, and the Government is committed to reaching 0.35 by 2010, but no plan or timeframe beyond that..
Download:
Point7_Fact sheet.pdf (258.11 KB) - 2-page fact sheet on Point 7 issues
Other Action:
- Get informed - read more about the 0.7 campaign.
- Write to the Minister of Foreign Affairs asking him to ensure New Zealand meets its commitment to raise its aid levels to 0.7% of Gross National Income by 2015.