The Weekly

This week, ACFID participated in a DFAT roundtable with ACFID members based in Melbourne, providing an opportunity to discuss shared priorities and current challenges facing Australia’s development and humanitarian engagement.  Invites for the Sydney version of this roundtable should be going out today (I believe it will be on the 24th of Feb). If you are an ACFID member not based in Melbourne or Sydney and would like to attend the Sydney event let me know and we can put you in contact with the relevant DFAT contact.

ACFID Member CEOs should have received ballots this week for the ACFID Board election. Please prioritise your submission as well as filling in a proxy form directed to the Chair if you are unable to join the Special General Meeting (SGM) on the 27th of February. If you have any questions about the election or the SGM please contact our Business Director Rae Lans.

This week, ACFID published a statement on the worsening situation in Myanmar, calling on the Australian Government to increase humanitarian and development assistance including support for the role of ACFID members and civil society.

Looking ahead, ACFID will host a Code of Conduct Committee (CCC) meeting in Canberra next week. We look forward to continuing engagement with members through the range of events and opportunities outlined below.

Weekly Data Shapshot

Climate Action: Woven Through the Work 

While climate action may not always be the largest standalone funding category, the ​ACFID NGO Aid Map​shows that climate-related activities are embedded across many of our members’ projects, spanning a wide range of regions and sectors. In FY 2023–24,490 projects (20% of total project) included some element of climate action, with 70 projects identifying climate action as their primary sector. Among organisations that responded to the survey, this represents 56 percent delivering projects with a climate focus or significant climate-related component.

To Read

Submission to the JSCFADT Inquiry into the role of Australia’s International Development Program in Preventing Conflict

ACFID has now made a submission to the JSCFADT Inquiry into the role of Australia’s International Development Program in Preventing Conflict. Thank you to the ACFID members who were involved in this submission, particularly the reference group. The key messages from this submission include the following:

– Investments in civil society (Australian NGOs and local partners) to deliver Australia’s development program are value-for-money, impactful, and strategic ways to prevent conflict.

– ​Women are central to conflict resolution and lasting peace efforts.

– A clearly defined and resourced approach to conflict prevention, using all tools of statecraft, will positively contribute to stability in the region.

​​- In achieving peace, investments in development are complementary to investments in defence and diplomacy.

You can find the submission​ here. 

To Read

Submission to the JSCFADT Inquiry into Gender Equality as a National Security and Economic Security Imperative

ACFID has also made a submission to the JSCFADT Inquiry into Gender Equality as a National Security and Economic Security Imperative. Consultations for this were done through the Gender CoP. Thank you to the ACFID members who were involved in this submission.

 The key messages from this submission include the following:

– The importance of including women in decision-making and the role that locally led leadership plays in improving national and economic security.

– Australia’s second National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security positioning must be used as both a prevention framework and a post‑conflict response.

– With the rise of the anti-rights movement, using all diplomatic tools available is needed to address the spread of extremism, disinformation and misinformation across the globe. 

You can find the submission ​here. 

Free Webinar – Evaluating Systems Change

Our friends at Clear Horizon are offering a free webinar on evaluating systems change with a fresh approach on how to spot, show and value early signs of system transformation. 

​​Date: 18 February 2026

​​Time: 11:00AM – 12:00PM (AEDT)

​​Further details and registration here

ACFID Code of Conduct Drop-In

The Code team will be hosting its first online Code of Conduct drop‑in session for 2026. This session will not be recorded and aims to offer an informal space to talk about anything ACFID Code related. Please come and drop by to meet Whitney and Marvin from the Code team and give feedback or ask your compliance questions.

If you have any questions, please email the Code team at ​[email protected]​

Date: 19 February 2026

Time: 10:00AM – 11:00AM (AEDT) 

Register ​here.

To Attend

ACFID CEO Connects: Sydney and Melbourne

As part of our new ACFID CEO Connects series, we invite Sydney and Melbourne based CEOs to join us in March. 

Sydney: 4 March 2026 | 3:00PM-5:00PM |  Caritas Office |  Register ​here​

Melbourne: 25 March 2026 | 3:00PM-5:00PM | Save the Children Office | Register ​here​

Stay tuned for CEO Connect events in Adelaide and Brisbane to be hosted mid-year!

Introduction to the Sector Workshops 

ACFID will be hosting a series of Introduction to the International Development and Humanitarian Sector Workshops in 2026. These participatory face-to-face events will include an overview of the history of international development and humanitarian action; an introduction to ACFID’s Code and role in the sector; guest speakers from a range of ACFID’s members; and, opportunities for networking and further learning. For queries and to access free registration for Small Members, please contact ​[email protected]​ 

Sydney: 4 March 2026 Register ​here​ 

Melbourne: 25 March 2026 Register ​here​ 

Adelaide, Brisbane and Online: Register interest ​here​ 

ACFID Connect: Is Your Organisation Built for a World That No Longer Exists?

The humanitarian and international development sector is facing a reckoning. With humanitarian funding retreating to 2016 levels while global defence spending hits an all-time high of $2.7 trillion, the “peace dividend” of the last 80 years has effectively finished. Intersecting crises from increased conflict to the climate emergency to rampant inequality are demanding a different response from civil society. For Boards and CEOs of civil society organisations, the central question is often less likely to be about growth and more likely to be about survival.

Join this ACFID Connect, facilitated by ​Archie Law AM​, who will unpack the transformation journey of an ACFID Member, Act for Peace. This session is designed specifically for governance leaders who are grappling with the issue of whether incremental change in their organisations will be enough. 

Intended audience: CEOs and Board members of ACFID members

Date: 12 March 2026

Time: 11:00AM – 12:00PM (AEDT)

Where: Online

Register ​here.

To Join

Seeking Expressions of Interest 

​​As many Members know, a revised version of the ACFID Code came into effect in 2024. Now, ACFID members are required to demonstrate their commitment to racial justice through several different ​Commitments in the Code​. 

​​To support ACFID members in meeting their learning and compliance needs, ACFID will be delivering a set of racial justice training(s) followed by policy writeshop(s), and developing a guidance note.  

​​To design the most appropriate support for members, we are currently taking expressions of interest in a proposed online Racial Justice training. 

​​Please register ​here.  

To Read

US development funding cuts not worse than expected

​​According to Dr Cameron Hill, Senior Researcher at the ANU Development Policy Centre (an affiliate member of ACFID), the budget deal reached with the US Congress exceeds the foreign aid funding requested by the Trump Administration for 2026-27 by nearly US$15 billion.

​Among the major beneficiaries of this funding are global health and humanitarian assistance, as well as funding for those international organisations that the US is still supportive of. However, at a total of US$28.5 billion, this represents a 60% reduction relative to the Biden Administration’s foreign aid spending in 2024-25.

​​Since the US’ categorisation of foreign aid is not entirely aligned with the OECD’s norms, some of this funding is not ODA-eligible, while some ODA-eligible funding will be channelled outside of the US State Department (including Pacific compact funding) and is not captured in the US$28.5 billion total. The Trump Administration may also unilaterally renege on aspects of this budget deal. The securitisation of aid will be further strengthened by the US$6.7 billion National Security Investment Program, overlooking development effectiveness to advance the Trump Administration’s interpretation of US national interests.

​​Access the statistics and data analysis ​here.

Jobs

Head of People and Culture | ChildFund Australia | Read more ​here 

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​​We are currently offering the ACFID Network 15% off the cost of five courses commencing in 2026. ​Check them out here!

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