Corporate Plan 2016–2020
August 2016
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Commonwealth of Australia, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Corporate Plan 2016–2020, August 2016
ISBN: 978-1-74322-345-1
Contact
Inquiries about this document should be directed to:
Director, Corporate Planning Section
Executive Branch
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
R G Casey Building
John McEwen Crescent
Barton ACT 0221
Australia
Phone +61 2 6261 3299
SECRETARY’S MESSAGE
I am pleased to present the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) Corporate Plan for 2016–17 to 2019–20.
This corporate plan sets out what we do, how we do it and how we will measure the department’s performance in supporting Ministers to deliver Australia’s foreign, trade and investment, and development policy priorities.
Australia has global interests, with a strong focus on the Indo-Pacific region. Global uncertainty – driven by weak global demand and shifting strategic currents – requires the active pursuit of a multifaceted agenda to advance our interests. As the Indo-Pacific’s economic and strategic weight increases, regional cooperation and a commitment to open economies will be crucial to expanding prosperity and narrowing strategic risk.
The department is committed to using its core assets – its staff and its overseas network of posts – to advance Australia’s interests overseas. More than ever, Australia’s economic prosperity is influenced by regional and international conditions and developments, and by our ability to shape and respond to them. This also demands close engagement in domestic policy development particularly on issues relevant to Australia’s trade performance and international competitiveness.
This corporate plan, prepared for the 2016–17 reporting period, outlines how the department will perform its functions for the period 2016–17 to 2019–20, as required under paragraph 35(1)(b) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.
DFAT has an ambitious agenda to deliver and I look forward to a challenging and exciting year ahead.
Frances Adamson
Secretary
PURPOSE
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT; the department) works to make Australia stronger, safer and more prosperous by promoting and protecting our interests internationally and contributing to global stability and economic growth, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region.
In partnership with government and non-government organisations, State and Territory partners, business and community groups in Australia and overseas, the department leads the Government’s efforts to shape the regional and international environment, progress Australia’s international security priorities and strengthen global cooperation in ways that advance Australia’s interests.
The department works to open up new markets and generate conditions for increased trade and investment to strengthen Australia’s economy and create jobs. It helps lift living standards and reduce poverty in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond. The department projects a positive and contemporary image of Australia as a destination for business, investment, tourism and study. DFAT also provides high-quality passport and consular services to Australian citizens.
Over the next four years (2016–17 to 2019–20), the department will achieve its purpose through the following priority functions:
· promoting a stable and prosperous regional and global environment by deepening our engagement with bilateral and regional partners and multilateral institutions;
· opening markets for Australian exports, promoting productive foreign investment to Australia, advancing Australian commercial interests, strengthening the global trading system, and promoting open markets and economic integration in the Indo-Pacific region;
· delivering an innovative aid program, centred on the Indo-Pacific region, which contributes to sustainable economic growth, poverty reduction and regional stability;
· enhancing Australia’s influence and reputation, and broadening understanding in Australia and globally of the Government’s international priorities, policies and programs;
· strengthening international frameworks and norms that promote human rights, gender equality, democratic principles and the rule of law, international security, and open and transparent global markets;
· providing a secure, efficient and responsive passport service, timely, effective and courteous consular services to Australian citizens overseas, and quality protocol services to the diplomatic and consular corps accredited to Australia;
· leading the Government’s response to international crises including humanitarian emergencies in the Indo-Pacific region; and
· protecting our people, keeping Government information and communications secure, and managing effectively Australia’s global property assets.
The department’s highly skilled and motivated staff and its network of overseas posts and offices in Australia will ensure DFAT continues to make Australia stronger, safer and more prosperous into the future.
OPERATING ENVIRONMENT
The international environment for advancing Australia’s interests will remain complex and contested over the life of this corporate plan. The department will play a lead role in protecting and pursuing Australia’s interests in a world in which:
· multipolarity will be an increasingly defining feature of the international system;
· states will need to maximise economic opportunity and minimise strategic risk to maintain international stability and prosperity;
· the Indo-Pacific region will continue to undergo strategic and economic shifts of lasting importance; and
· a broader range of domestic and international non-state actors will engage in matters of foreign, trade and investment, and development policy.
Globally, we are likely to see further pressures to the institutions, laws, principles and norms of international behaviour that comprise the existing international order. International relations will be more contested. Securing meaningful multilateral outcomes through regional and global institutions will be more demanding.
In the Indo-Pacific, emerging powers’ growing economic weight will be accompanied by their increased capacity to project their influence in ways that interact with our interests. Australia’s security and prosperity will depend on how the region’s major powers manage their relationships and how effectively Australia reacts to, and influences, key political, economic, military, and social developments. Escalating strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific remains a critical risk.
The growing economic weight of the Indo-Pacific region presents opportunities for Australia if we are positioned well. The negotiation, implementation and promotion of free trade agreements will enable us to tap into new and emerging sources of growth. This will support Australia’s economic transition from mining investment-led economic growth to a broader growth base. But there are critical risks. Many of our Asian trading partners face structural economic challenges and, in some cases, difficult reforms will be needed to address those challenges. In Australia and globally, protectionist sentiment is likely to rise. This threatens efforts to revive global trade reform which is central to Australia’s trade and investment interests.
The state of governance and development in the Indo-Pacific will continue to be mixed. While strong economic growth in parts of the region is expected to continue, rising income inequality will challenge the prospects for sustained growth and development outcomes. The Pacific will continue to face challenges associated with distance from markets, large informal economies and high-cost service delivery – including in health and education. A key risk facing the department is how we respond to natural disasters, especially in the Pacific where governments are often constrained in their ability to respond effectively. Our aid investments will need to respond to crises as well as contribute to longer-term goals of sustainable economic growth, poverty reduction and regional stability.
The international community will continue to be vulnerable to terrorist attacks from radical groups such as Da'esh and those they inspire in our neighbourhood and domestically. As more Australians travel overseas, the department will play a key role in supporting their security and welfare through its passport and consular services.
Within a constrained budgetary environment, the department will seek to maximise our diplomatic reach and advance Australia’s interests abroad while engaging in key policy debates at home.
performance
This section sets out the priority functions and major operational activities that contribute to the department’s purpose, including indicators of performance over the next four years. This should be read in conjunction with the 2016–17 Portfolio Budget Statements, the 2016–17 Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements (expected to be released late-2016) and the 2015–16 Annual Report (expected to be published in October 2016).
In this plan, we are seeking to measure our performance against the department’s purpose and priority functions. Performance measures are being reviewed and refined iteratively, including to align this Corporate Plan with the Key Performance Indicators in the Portfolio Budget Statements.
Promoting a stable and prosperous regional and global environment
The department cultivates and deepens Australia's engagement with bilateral and regional partners and with multilateral institutions, with a particular focus on the Indo-Pacific region. In doing so, the department helps government actively shape the international environment through development of strong bilateral relationships; coalition-building with other nations with common interests; and an activist approach to using regional and global institutions and forums to create rules and norms that promote stability, peace and prosperity.
The Indo-Pacific is rapidly entrenching its position as the centre of gravity of the global economy and emerging strategic competition. Developments in this region will have the greatest impact on Australia and provide the context in which we pursue both our global and bilateral interests.
Major operational activities
· Lead whole-of-government development and implementation of a comprehensive strategy to guide Australia’s international engagement and advance Australia’s interests, both globally and regionally.
· Contribute to the domestic policy agenda, including through using our international networks and expertise to address policy challenges.
· Use overseas missions to build strong bilateral relationships and for high-quality information-gathering, analysis and advocacy in support of government policies.
· Develop networks and coalitions of like-minded international partners in pursuit of shared objectives to maximise Australia’s influence.
· Provide timely, high-quality advice to portfolio ministers on international developments and appropriate policy responses.
· Create and exploit opportunities to advocate Australian interests internationally through high-quality support for ministerial visits to key partners and international forums.
· Seek opportunities to introduce more innovative approaches to foreign policy, trade and investment, and development programs, as well as in our service delivery and corporate functions.
Performance measures
Method / Description / TimingCase studies / The department will use case studies to assess our performance:
· providing whole-of-government coordination and leadership to advance Australia’s interests internationally;
· shaping outcomes which reflect Australia’s interests, including through coalition-building with international partners; and
· providing high-quality and timely advice, briefing and support to Ministers and key stakeholders. / Annually
Opening markets, promoting foreign investment and advancing commercial interests
We will work to open new markets for Australian exports of goods and services and investment, resolve trade and investment barriers, foster conditions and networks that will attract productive foreign investment, and support Australian business in their overseas commercial endeavours. This includes working with whole-of-government partners to ensure Australia’s foreign investment regime supports much needed inward investment and meets the national interest. We will promote a mutually reinforcing resources/energy and climate agenda internationally and domestically.
We will advance these objectives through the negotiation and implementation of trade and investment agreements at bilateral, regional, multilateral and plurilateral levels. We will pursue and advocate for global and domestic reforms that deliver trade liberalising, pro-growth and market-based policy outcomes. We will support and advance economic integration in the Indo-Pacific region. We will work to achieve a more effective multilateral trading system.
Major operational activities
· Negotiate, implement and promote priority bilateral and regional free trade agreements.
· Promote economic reform, open markets and practical collaboration in APEC, the G20 and the OECD.
· Shape the future negotiating agenda in the WTO with a focus on securing outcomes in areas in which Australia has commercial and policy interests.
· Promote productive foreign investment to Australia, reflecting the national interest.
· Advance Australia’s interests through active participation in international dispute settlement mechanisms.
· Support Australian business engaged in global trade and investment through advice on the ground, action to address barriers and issues, and well-targeted trade finance programs.
· Provide high-quality economic analysis and contribute to the Government’s major domestic economic reforms.
· Promote the benefits of international trade and open markets to the Australian community.
Performance measures
Method / Description / TimingCase studies / The department will use case studies to assess our performance:
· delivering trade and investment outcomes for Australian business;
· promoting Australia’s economic interests in bilateral, regional, multilateral and plurilateral outcomes; and
· satisfying business with our support. / Annually
Delivering an innovative aid program
The aid program promotes Australia’s national interests by contributing to sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction, particularly in the Indo-Pacific. The department is responsible for implementing Australia’s aid program in line with the Government’s development policy, Australian aid: promoting prosperity, reducing poverty, enhancing stability, and its associated performance framework, Making Performance Count: enhancing the accountability and effectiveness of Australian aid.
The aid program operates in a number of countries with challenging security environments and weak governance. By their nature, aid investments contain a high degree of risk which requires careful management. Early identification and management of risks contributes to managing aid effectively. The department will continue to use a range of risk management measures including fraud control, partner assessments, due diligence assessments, and the application of safeguards on environmental protection, resettlement and child protection.
Aid investments managed by the department are directed to six priority areas that support private sector development and human development (see Figure 1).