InDev

11/03/2024

Last week we talked about the gender pay gap in development organisations, this week, Lowy shared some great stats on gender financing in Southeast Asia.
The insights show how much gender-related financing there is in the region, with the methodology finding an additional $3.4B in financing beyond what is self-nominated by donors.
But, what was most interesting was the graph below, showing that the level of gender inequality in a country, isn't related to its level of gender financing. For example, Laos had the second highest ranking of gender inequality, but the second lowest financing.
You can read the Lowy article here: https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/gender-equality-financing-spotlight-southeast-asia

08/03/2024

Hear from David Roach, Director and Co-Founder, Catalpa International , on his thoughts on the development world in 2024.

"The fundamental question for us as development professionals is ‘how do we use digital to solve persistent and complex development challenges?’ We need a shift in mind-set and it starts with asking the right questions. I would love to hear more questions like ‘how might we utilise digital technology to increase workforce labor participation for the Pacific without people needing to relocate? or how might we get ahead of digitisation and its potential to entrench harmful gender norms in the Pacific, by investing in digital skills and career pathways for women and girls.”

Check out David's, thoughts on 2023, the year ahead and where development is heading in our leaders series.

https://indev.media/news/2024/03/indev-leaders-interviews-2024-the-innovators/

07/03/2024

Hear from Sarah Mak, CEO and Co-Founder, Folktale, on her thoughts on the development world in 2024.

With video storytelling, data transforms from sterile, detached numbers into living, breathing stories. Video captures the richness, complexity, and emotional depth of experiences in ways that a spreadsheet or report simply cannot.”

Check out Sarah's, thoughts on 2023, the year ahead and where development is heading in our leaders series.

https://indev.media/news/2024/03/indev-leaders-interviews-2024-the-innovators/

06/03/2024

Hear from Carlyn James, Director, Practice & Innovation, ThinkPlace Global Development, on her thoughts on the development world in 2024.

“We might use, let’s say machine learning, to enhance our ideation processes or help us mitigate consent or confidentiality issues if we can kind of create images that are new to the world.” “the thing we’re hearing most from clients is they perceive it as just being riddled with risk.” “so this is a service area that we’re sort of looking into is how to help clients navigate that a little bit more because right now I think everyone’s just feeling a bit paralyzed by it.”

Check out Carly's, thoughts on 2023, the year ahead and where development is heading in our leaders series.

https://indev.media/news/2024/03/indev-leaders-interviews-2024-the-innovators/

04/03/2024

Whats happened this week in Global Development for the Asia Pacific?
Check out the latest updates and insights in InDev Weekly:

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫?
► Australian-Pacific Rugby Union Partnership (APRUP) - The Australian Government and Rugby Australia will partner to deliver a four-year $14.2 million investment to support high-performance Rugby Union across the Pacific through the Australian-Pacific Rugby Union Partnership (APRUP), bringing the region closer together through a shared love of rugby.
► ACFID calls for doubling of the Aid budget - In the elad up to the 2024-25 Austrlaian Budget, ACFID has called on the governemnt to boost funding. "The foreign aid budget is at an all-time low as a proportion of overall government spending. Without a substantial boost, this is set to flatline from 2026 even as global demand for humanitarian and development assistance soars,"
► Debt-for-nature deals for Pacific Islands to lower borrowing costs - Pacific Islands nations most at risk from rising seas should consider novel debt-for-nature deals as high debt levels across the region make traditional loans unsustainable, a senior International Monetary Fund official said on Tuesday.

𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬
► Vietnam eyes crackdown on workers’ rights and foreign aid, report says
► PNG, Indonesia ratify defence deal to expand security cooperation

𝐈𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬
►► Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will host the leaders of ASEAN and Timor-Leste for a summit to commemorate 50 years of partnership this week. Susannah Patton writes in Lowy what to watch at the ASEAN-Australia summit, including relationships to mend, and the hot button issues to avoid.
►► "numerous enabling factors" for transnational crimes take place in PNG, such as weak governance structures, corruption, improved technology, poverty, and geographical location, says a recent report from PNG's National Research Institute (PNGNRI). "Papua New Guinea's strategic location makes it susceptible to the rapid increase of transnational crime along its borders with Indonesia." The report has several policy recommendations for the government, including upgrading facilities for law enforcement, among others.
►► "It’s not just up to our diplomats, nor our military alone. It starts with who we are as a country: our First Nations history, our multicultural fabric, our institutions, business, academia, and civil society." A new research paper has been released asking 'What does it look like for Australia to take A Whole-of-Nation Approach to International Policy'

Want to read more on these and other articles, check out this weeks InDev weekly:
https://preview.mailerlite.io/emails/webview/18103/114826220508547060

01/03/2024

The year of the election is a test of democracy, and one that will have a lasting impact. Beyond the general elections, many have legislative votes that can impact not just their own nations, but human rights, economies, and the prospects for peace. Crucially, and sadly, for “some countries balloting in elections are neither free nor fair.”

Check out Peter Rudd, Executive Director at the Council for International Development Aotearoa New Zealand, thoughts on 2023, the year ahead and where development is heading in our leaders series.

https://indev.media/news/2024/02/indev-leaders-interviews-2024-the-ngo-peak-bodies/

29/02/2024

“Technologies can support what we do, but fundamentally we need to make sure the design, management, and measurement of impact in this work is right before you layer on more tech to that process.”
This idea of access and security fits with Jess’s focus on while tech is great, we still need to get the basics right before we look at shiny new ideas. There’s still a lot of bad practice; in the end, it’s behavior and the way we interact, design, and measure that needs work.

Check out Jessica Mackenzie, Chief of Policy and Advocacy at Australian Council for International Development, thoughts on 2023, the year ahead and where development is heading in our leaders series.

https://indev.media/news/2024/02/indev-leaders-interviews-2024-the-ngo-peak-bodies/

28/02/2024

For each strategy and government policy, funding is crucial, but more so linking funding to policy and community is siale's focus.
How development actors partner with communities needs to shift, and NGOs and PIANGO have a key role to fill. “It’s to make sure that we are in there and make those development ecosystems, all of it, have a sense that it is accountable to people.”

Check out Executive Director of the Pacific Islands Association of Non-Government Organisations, Emeline Siale Ilolahia (Siale),'s, thoughts on 2023, the year ahead and where development is heading in our leaders series.

https://indev.media/news/2024/02/indev-leaders-interviews-2024-the-ngo-peak-bodies/

26/02/2024

Whats happened this week in Global Development for the Asia Pacific?
Check out the latest updates and insights in InDev Weekly:

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫?
► More than half a million Gazans are a 'step away from famine' - Devex has shared that the United Nations relief coordinator warned the Security Council last week that “hunger in Gaza has deteriorated fast and is at catastrophic levels,” with more than a quarter of the population a “step away from famine,”
► Climate-KIC to join UTS - On 1 January 2024, Climate-KIC Australia (CKIC) became part of the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), working within the Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF). CKIC is a leading driver of climate action, applying expertise in systems innovation to a series of Climate Impact Portfolios (connected projects across multiple levers of change in chosen systems), projects and programs.
► ESCAP and IDRC announce new partnership - The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) today announced a new partnership to promote inclusive and sustainable economies in Asia and the Pacific.

𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬
► PNG vote of no confidence not entertained, denied by committee
► 'Minerals harvesting': Cook Islands Parliament makes changes to seabed mining law

𝐈𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬
►► “Give a person a fish.." Its a widely used phrase in ID, but is teaching to fish also causing dependancy. In the Redundant Charities blog, Weh Yeoh argues we need to help build the industry, and not fly-in, fly out teaching/capacity building.
►► Humanitarian Advisory Group's latest blog, and podcast, looks at how humanitarian recruitment impacts local communities. International NGOs are recruiting more and more local staff into their teams. This demonstrates important gains for representation and bringing local perspectives into international field offices, but it can also bring unintended consequences for the local organisations they leave behind.
►► What if we replaced measuring GDP, with measuring girls that ride their bikes to school? There's a lot of data in that one question about safety, equality of girls and boys, and physical activity. And not what you get when you measure GDP, you wouldn't be looking at those qualities at all. Insights from the Scotonomics newsletter.

Want to read more on these and other articles, check out this weeks InDev weekly:
https://preview.mailerlite.io/preview/18103/emails/114018276137240563

20/02/2024

Our Leaders Series kicks off next week, and we are so excited for this!

We've asked a range of leaders across the development ecosystem the same 6 questions and will be sharing them with you. Each article will feature three leaders and their perspectives. From NGO Peak Bodies to Finance leaders, from Consultants to Technology and Research.

Join InDev for this fantastic series to hear different thoughts on what 2024 may hold!
Make sure you subscribe to receive first access to each interview in InDev Weekly, and check out our article below on the key questions.

We may already be reaching the end of February, but 2024 is shaping up to be a big year in global development. The calls for change seem to be growing, but what do the leaders on the ground think of the year ahead? InDev is pleased to be launching a new series, the 2024 InDev...

19/02/2024

Tag companies you know in the NZ development Ecosystem!
We are tracking well with the InDev NZ Ecosystem Map, with over 35 organisations already responding. But looking at the graphic above, there's a few areas we are still missing. Academic and Research, Contractors, Technology and Finance are a lot emptier than expected.

If you work in the NZ development ecosystem, make sure you add your details this week to not miss out on being profiled in the first Development ecosystem map!
Or, if you know of organisations that are, tag them below!

The survey will close at COB on the 23rd of February.

13/02/2024

Providing a safe and culturally respectful platform for First Nations Australians within Australia’s development sector

The Association of First Nations Australians in Development (AFNAD) is a network created by, and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians currently engaged or interested in working in Australia’s international development sector. Founded in 2022, AFNAD is a volunteer-led, independent network, dedicated to fostering a secure environment for its First Nations members. AFNAD’s primary objectives include facilitating networking opportunities, knowledge sharing, and creating a sense of meaningful connection, cultural safety, and support for their members.
AFNAD currently has more than 30 members across 20 managing contractors, independent consultancies and Australian Government funded programs, with new members joining monthly.
The network has already been active in supporting First Nations Australians, including participating in DFAT’s Yarning Circle Seminar series, and launching AFNAD’s Indigenous mentoring program in October.

You can read more about AFNAD on their website - https://bit.ly/48jH3hL