News Australia

Australia has signed a security pact with the neighboring island nation of Vanuatu, its second defense agreement in the region in two months and a boost in ...

That partnership will include further military, policing and cyber security co-operation; Vanuatu's foreign minister says the country has no security agreement ...

"Australia has an ethical interest in that; we have a regional interest in that as a member of the Pacific family." Following high-level talks on Monday, Vanuatu described Australia as a "core" security partner. - Vanuatu describes Australia as a "core" security partner

The foreign minister is putting Australia forward as the security partner of choice in the Pacific as she leads a bipartisan delegation across the region.

"There's a lot of Chinese investment in Palau. "That's what the Pacific called for ... "We stand together as nations at the forefront of delivering ... I think they're the number one foreign investor now. We have islands that will disappear if we don't raise those ambitions and keep below 1.5 (degrees)." The foreign minister is putting Australia forward as the security partner of choice in the Pacific as she leads a bipartisan delegation across the region.

Minister for International Development and the Pacific Pat Conroy says the security deal recently signed between Australia and Vanuatu is “just one part” of ...

Cérge is a communications platform for organisations to provide personalised assistive service to customers with disability and a marketing platform to promote ...

I have Cerebral Palsy with a speech impairment and it was wonderful to be able to communicate my needs before I arrive through the Cerge app.” Cérge also ensures customers remain in complete control of when and where they share their customer service preference information in exchange for personalised service. Secondly, we believe this platform will be beneficial to other tenpin bowling centres across the country and we can provide centres with direct feedback on the benefits of including Cérge in their business operations,” added O’Neill. “It is incredibly helpful just knowing someone will be there expecting our arrival to keep us on track and making it seamless. For customers with disability, Cérge is a companion app available to download on both apple and android devices. These may include visual, intellectual, or physical impairments and mental health issues, including post-traumatic stress disorders.

Australia signed a security deal on Tuesday with the Pacific islands nation of Vanuatu, it said in a statement, amid concern over China's military ambitions ...

Penny Wong - along with Pacific Minister Pat Conroy and their coalition counterparts Simon Birmingham and Michael McCormack - are visiting Vanuatu, Palau and ...

"We want a region that is peaceful, prosperous, stable and in which sovereignty is respected and that's the approach we want to take to the Pacific and the Indo-Pacific more broadly." "We believe that the region is best served when the region takes responsibility for its security and that's the approach we will continue to take," she told the ABC's 7.30 on Tuesday. "That's precisely what (Mr Panuelo) and many others in the region are talking about, a region that is stable, a region in which rules are respected, and which sovereignty is preserved."

The Japanese government adds its voice to the debate about plans for coal and gas price caps amid concerns about energy security at home.

We've negotiated with states and territories to achieve an outcome in the interests of the nation … Most contested is a plan to give the government the power to determine a "reasonable price" for gas indefinitely. "Any investment that was a good idea before the war in Ukraine will be a good idea after the war in Ukraine. "Reassurances have been repeatedly given from the Australian government to the Japanese government, including at the prime minister's level and the cabinet minister's level, that Australia will remain a reliable and trusted supplier of energy and resources to Japan, as well as a safe place to invest." "Close to 40 per cent of gas and 60 per cent of coal imported by Japan comes from Australia, which underscores the overwhelming impact on the Japanese economy and the wellbeing of the Japanese people. The Japanese government has become the latest player to add its voice to the debate about the Commonwealth's plan to cap coal and gas prices amid anxiety about energy security in the north-Asian giant.

The agreement was signed as Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong visited the island nation in the wake of a severe ransomware attack in November. The attack ...

He said the agreement covered the contingency of “a gap” in the kinds of security that Australia can provide: “When it comes to security issues in the region, we will call on them [the Australians] first.” The two countries have historically had strong diplomatic ties. The attack left the Pacific island’s government in disarray; internal systems were [not allow a Chinese military base in the country](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/14/solomon-islands-pm-rules-out-chinese-military-base-china-australia-security-partner-manasseh-sogavare). [reported](https://www.smh.com.au/world/oceania/australia-called-in-to-help-after-hackers-shut-down-vanuatu-government-systems-20221114-p5by7a.html) that officials from the Australian Cybersecurity Centre assisted Vanuatu’s government in rebuilding the systems following the attack. [announced](https://www.foreignminister.gov.au/minister/penny-wong/media-release/vanuatu-and-australia-sign-bilateral-security-agreement).

The telecommunications giant said in a release to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on Wednesday that a preliminary analysis by cybersecurity firm ...

Weir travelled from Ballarat to his Warrnambool facility on the morning of 30 October to train with McLean and Kermond. We need to know what impact warming oceans and ocean acidification will have on krill populations in the future. I think they’re talking about it increasing the price of wine and spirits, but frankly it’s just ridiculous. The Senate will be recalled tomorrow afternoon to vote on the legislation. That’s the ultimate objective, high-level recycling, not low-level, one-off contaminated material. Firefighters are working to extinguish the fire, however you should not expect a firefighter at your door. We welcome the government’s focus on these issues. Meanwhile, the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has urged China to navigate differences with Australia “wisely”. or there are local political factors stifling movement, then one or two states should act unilaterally. A slow-moving fire is travelling on Butterfly Road towards Mary Road. Chris Bowen has confirmed Labor’s energy bill will be passed tomorrow with support from the Greens, Jacqui Lambie and David Pocock. Helping people make this switch helps remove risk from gas market prices.

Today AUSTRAC released Australia's first national proliferation financing risk assessment aimed at strengthening domestic and international efforts to ...

“AUSTRAC offers a range of resources and guidelines for the private sector regarding TFS compliance. The results of this assessment have found that Australia is primarily targeted by state-based or linked procurement networks that wish to exploit a range of sectors to export restricted, sensitive or dual-use goods and knowledge. In October 2020, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) updated Recommendation 1 of its standards on countering financial crime.

Casey Jenkins is suing national arts body for withdrawing funding for performance exhibition Immaculate in 2020.

When the pandemic closed international borders, they were granted an amendment to the funding so that it could be used for Immaculate, a livestream of them self-inseminating with donated sperm while discussing their past experiences with conception. And so I feel like for artists in general, this is a win because we are able to … [Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup](https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/oct/29/email-newsletters-guardian-australia-best-daily-news-emails-newsletter-free-sign-up-inbox-subscribe-headlines?CMP=copyembed)

Analysis shows that the aid contracting market is becoming increasingly dominated by a small group of Australian companies, says Huiyuan Liu.

And second, the Australian aid contracting market is becoming increasingly dominated by a small group of firms. From 2011-12 to 2021-22, the market share of the top three suppliers increased by 12%, the top five by 14% and the top ten by 9%. First, a remarkably high share of Australian aid contracts goes to Australian-registered companies. Two of them had portfolio values from all their active contracts in excess of $1 billion in 2021-22, well above the rest of the suppliers, with Abt almost hitting the $2 billion threshold. [provided to the Pacific Islands and Southeast Asia](https://devpolicy.org/aidtracker/destinations/), where Australian companies have a lot of experience. Although there is churn among the smaller suppliers, over the past decade, four of the top five suppliers have maintained their leading positions in the aid contracting market. Concentration of the contracting market has also occurred through mergers and acquisitions. This is larger than the official figure of aid flows to commercial suppliers (21% in 2020-21) due to differences in calculation methods, as the latter is calculated by adding up total value of new contracts awarded in the year and extensions of past contracts. [Australian government set the target](https://www.dfat.gov.au/sites/default/files/framework-making-performance-count.pdf) of reducing the number of individual investments by 20% by 2016-17 in an effort to reduce fragmentation, cut administrative costs, and improve the operating efficiency of the aid program. It reached a low point in 2012-13, when Cowater International from Canada and Research Triangle Institute from the US received 33% of the total value of contracts awarded. In 2020-21, the estimated annual procurement value (adjusting for the fact that nearly half of the contracts are multi-year) was $1.37 billion, or about 30% of Australia’s aid budget. A significant amount of Australian aid is delivered by private sector contractors.