Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

The developments I have outlined are troubling, I think, to everyone in this chamber, and they remind us how much work there is to be done. But the Albanese government is acting. In our development program, we have reinstated a performance target requiring that 80 per cent of Australia's investments effectively address gender equality in implementation. We have also introduced a mandatory requirement that our ODA investments over $3 million have a gender equality objective. And, in 2022-23, we will provide $65 million through the Gender Equality Fund to respond to the needs, interests and rights of diverse women and girls, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region. We have a steadfast commitment to advancing gender equality and the human rights of women and girls at home, in our region and globally. As I've said before, we take the world as it is, but we have to work to shape it for the better.