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Australia congratulates the Colombo Plan on its Diamond Jubilee

Category
Development

The Colombo Plan for Cooperative Economic and Social Development in Asia and the Pacific celebrated its 60th anniversary on 1 July 2011. The Colombo Plan is one of the world's oldest regional cooperation forums and has created an invaluable legacy of networks and people-to-people links promoting intra-regional cooperation.

Sixty years ago, seven Commonwealth countries–Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), India, New Zealand and Pakistan–formally ratified the Colombo Plan with the goal of enhancing the economic and social development of countries in the South and Southeast Asian region.

The group quickly grew following the membership of other Commonwealth and non-Commonwealth countries, with the Colombo Plan now a regional inter-governmental organisation of 26 member countries.

This network of donor and recipient countries meet regularly to discuss development issues, focusing on technical cooperation and human resource development. The objective is to promote economic and social development in member countries.

Australian assistance is provided through two separate avenues–core budget support to the Colombo Plan and a contribution to the Colombo Plan drug advisory program.

Since the Plans ratification, more than 128,000 technical experts and volunteers have been provided by both developed-economy member countries and through South-South cooperation among developing-economy member countries.

Approximately 400,000 scholarships for students and trainees have been provided by donor countries and numerous infrastructure and educational facilities have been constructed.

The Colombo Plan has intimate historical links with Australia–it was inspired by the Australian delegation's presentation to a meeting of Commonwealth Foreign Ministers in Colombo in 1949 on plans to develop an Australian aid program. The Plan was essentially the first umbrella scheme under which bilateral aid, in the form of technical assistance and support for economic infrastructure, could flow to developing countries in Asia.

It instigated a long-standing and ongoing process of educational engagement between Asia and Australia. More than 40,000 students from Asian countries have studied in Australia under the Colombo Plan up to 1975.

Since then, Australia has continued to provide scholarships through AusAID's Australian Development Scholarships and the Australian Regional Development Scholarships. Today, AusAID provides short and long-term study and professional development scholarships through the Australia Awards initiative.

Australia's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Kathy Klugman, is the President of the Colombo Plan Council during this Diamond Jubilee year. This is the first time the Australian Government has held the Presidency of the Council. The role of the council is to identify important development issues facing its members.

More information

The Colombo Plan [external site]

Australia Awards [external site]

Scholarships and the aid program [external site]

Last Updated: 19 June 2012
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