Statement of Expectations and Intent

1.Contribute to the government’s aid agenda to assist developing countries to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable development in line with Australia’s national interest by:

• formulating research programs for identifying or finding solutions to agricultural programs of developing countries;
• commissioning research that will foster agricultural development in partner countries and enhance the capacity of partner countries to undertake agricultural research; and
• conducting and funding effective development activities related to its research programs.

1.ACIAR will contribute to the achievement of the government’s aid agenda.  ACIAR’s contribution will focus on the imperative of addressing enhanced agricultural activity and sustainable agricultural practices/ policies to achieve outcomes at a community level.  This will be measured by:

• clear evidence of alignment of ACIAR country priorities and plans with the single whole-of-government development framework;
• feedback from senior government sources in partner countries and Australian Heads of Mission that demonstrates ACIAR research programs are appropriately targeted and valued in these countries;
• maintenance of agreed investment programs and targets in partner countries, including capacity-building partnerships with overseas researchers;
• a ‘best practice’ program of ex post Project Impact Evaluation that (through independent professional analysis) demonstrates positive net economic returns from ACIAR project investments. This program will work closely with the AusAID Office of Development Effectiveness;
• use of adoption studies to measure uptake of larger projects.

2.Support Australia’s aid objective to accelerate economic growth, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, by:

• strengthening rural development through research; and
• increasing the delivery of benefits to farmers, policy-makers and natural resource managers in partner countries.

2.Agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors will continue as significant sources of economic growth in the region and ACIAR research will focus on both productivity enhancement and knowledge transfer to accelerate growth.  Action will be taken to:

• ensure that all commissioned projects are designed with in-built adoption pathways;
• ensure that at least 40 per cent of research projects deliver significant economic benefits to farmers (including policy development) within five years of completion;
• increase the proportion of activities involving extension agencies, private industry and NGOs in ACIAR’s program.

3.Contribute to Australia’s aid objectives to invest in people and deliver better education by developing the skills of partner country research scientists through formal training courses and informally through project activities.

3.Building the capacity of agricultural research institutes in partner countries will be a key ACIAR priority including specialised training activities and informal or on-the-job capacity-enhancement provisions.  Progress will be based on: 

• an expansion in the number of postgraduate (John Allwright) Fellowships and evidence of an increased number of returnees in leadership positions in partner countries;
• evidence of the relevance and value of project-related training and training courses.

4.Strive to maximise the effectiveness of aid delivered by Australia through:

• ensuring ACIAR has a performance and outcome oriented approach to assessing its research results; and
• undertaking independent reviews as part of ACIAR’s Impact and Assessment Program.

4.ACIAR will continue to work on improving aid effectiveness primarily through closer interaction with partner countries, including consultation and joint strategy development and measurement of results.  These initiatives will be achieved by:

• projects over $400,000 being subject to an independent end-of-project review, and the results of such reviews reported to the Commission;
• a ‘best practice’ program of ex post Project Impact Evaluation that (through independent professional analysis) demonstrates positive net economic returns from ACIAR project investments;
• ACIAR’s Policy Linkages and Impact Assessment Program working closely with the AusAID Office of Development Effectiveness.

5.Enhance awareness of ACIAR’s research findings andactivities with the public, the scientific community and policy-makers in Australia and overseas, including through an effective and timely publication program.

5.ACIAR will undertake a wider range of public awareness activities to communicate the results of research to a range of stakeholders and audiences.  A key message will be that ACIAR develops research projects to reflect national research strengths and priorities and mutual advantage with partner countries.  Action will be taken to:

• ensure that all commissioned projects have annual progress reports and final reports that are accessible on www.aciar.gov.au;
• ensure that our corporate stakeholder documentation covering our Annual Operational Plan, Annual Report and Impact Evaluations are timely and of high quality;
• deliver an effective and timely program of communication of research outputs, including both electronic and paper publications, suitable workshops and conference papers, and briefs for developing country policy-makers, where appropriate;
• conduct public awareness activities in conjunction with AusAID, the Crawford Fund, and the Minister’s office.

6.Support Australian rural industries by ensuring, where appropriate, that these industries are informed of and gain benefits from ACIAR’s international relationships and commissioned research.

6.Support for Australian rural industries will be secured through project selection that addresses Australia’s research advantages, strengths and priorities.  This will be achieved by collaboration to enhance:

• our capacity to respond to biosecurity threats from the region;
• the ability of Australian researchers to access plant genetic resources held by international centres supported by ACIAR;
• the proportion (more than 40 per cent) of ACIAR projects designed with an Australian rural-industry component;
• the identification and measurement of Australian project benefits through ACIAR’s Impact Evaluation Program.

7.Ensure that communication arrangements are in place to:

• keep me fully informed of ACIAR’s activities;
• ensure my approval of proposed investments in new partner countries or in post-conflict/post-disaster situations; and
• consult on the formulation of new Corporate Plans and the Annual Operational Plan and Budget.

7.ACIAR undertakes to implement high-quality and timely ministerial briefing across all relevant activities.  This will include:

• notification and briefing to the Minister in a timely fashion of all ‘significant events’ where the ACIAR Chief Executive Officer (CEO) accepts it as his/her responsibility to advise on events that will be judged as significant by the Minister;
• submission for approval of proposals on planned investments in new partner countries or in post-conflict/post-disaster situations;
• submission of draft Corporate Plans to the Minister for approval, outlining consultation processes used in their development;
• submission of drafts of ACIAR’s Annual Operational Plan and Budgets for approval after consultation with the Portfolio Department and AusAID;
• ministerial meetings with the Commission and the Policy Advisory Council at appropriate times each year.

8.Ensure that communications arrangements are in place to provide relevant information to the Secretary of DFAT and the Director-General of AusAID in parallel to information provided to me, in order to reinforce DFAT role as the principal source of advice to me on policy and governance responsibilities related to ACIAR.

8.ACIAR will maintain continuing and consistent communications with the Departmental Secretary and Director-General of AusAID to ensure all parties are fully informed of ACIAR developments, proposals and achievements on a timely basis.  Similar actions will be taken with other parts of the whole-of-government machinery, where appropriate.  Actions will include:

• provision of Commission meeting papers to the Secretary of DFAT in advance of Commission meetings and discussion of key policy issues as required;
• regular monthly briefings to the Minister, copied to the Parliamentary Secretary, in parallel with provision of information to the Secretary of DFAT and the Director-General of AusAID on activities or developments in ACIAR during that month, including briefings after each meeting of the ACIAR Commission;
• similar briefings to other government departments where that is required in a whole-of-government context, including for example Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) and the Department of Education Science and Training (DEST).

9.Ensure compliance with legislative and regulatory requirements, particularly in administering the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research Act 1982.

9.The Centre will continue to address not only enabling legislation but also on-going developments in the Government’s wider policy and legislative agenda that have implications for ACIAR in a whole-of-government context.  This will include compliance with all relevant government legislation.

10.Manage financial matters in a prudent, efficient and effective manner, in accordance with legislative requirements under the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, the Finance Minister’s Orders, and the ACIAR Act 1982.

10.Financial management will be an on-going area of managerial and governance performance receiving priority attention.  Systems and structures will be reviewed to secure:

• effective financial management;
• maintenance and regular review of the Chief Executive Instructions;
• unqualified audits on the end-of-year financial statements;
• an active internal audit committee.

11.Maintain high standards of corporate governance, including in risk management, and foster a culture of continuous improvement throughout the organisation.

11.Corporate governance will be continuously reviewed and assessed by both internal and external authorities to achieve the highest possible standards and accountabilities.  This will include:

• a “no exception” benchmark on the parallel advisory mechanisms;
• ensure that our corporate stakeholder documentation covering our Annual Operational Plan, Annual Report, Impact Evaluations are timely and high quality;
• timely updates of our Risk Management strategy and reports against it to the Audit Committee and Commission meetings;
• continuous improvement fostered through simplification and streamlining of administrative processes, improved internal and external communications, and fostering a culture of seeking practical impacts from research as reflected in adoption rates.

12.Promote and uphold the Australian Public Service (APS) values and APS code of conduct and ACIAR’s Service Charter.

12.As a federal government statutory authority ACIAR will be fully committed to all APS values and codes of conduct.  ACIAR commits to effective monitoring to ensure:

• conduct of ACIAR staff in a manner consistent with the Public Service Values and Code of Conduct;
• active promulgation of all policies and guidelines, including the Public Service Code of Conduct and ACIAR Service Charter to all staff via the ACIAR intranet and during staff workshops.

13.       Develop key performance indicators to reflect and measure ACIAR’s success in meeting these expectations, and present that material in regular reports to me, consolidated into an annual report each year.

13.ACIAR will re-examine its performance indicators on an annual basis or more frequently if necessary to maintain up-to-date and effective performance guidelines for the organisation.  This will be achieved by: 

• development of key performance indicators (KPIs) for the ACIAR research program in each country (in consultation with partner countries); multilateral programs; education and training activities; and corporate programs;
• achievements against KPIs being reported in ACIAR Annual Reports to the Minister for subsequent parliamentary tabling and public release.