ACIAR has an executive management governance structure. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) manages the administrative and financial affairs of ACIAR and its staff, subject to, and in accordance with, any directions given by the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The CEO leads an executive team, which provides strategic leadership of the agency to ensure program delivery is consistent with government policy objectives to an appropriate level of performance.
Acting Chief Executive Officer
Dr Nick Austin has extensive experience in international agricultural development and a long association with ACIAR, most recently as current President of the Policy Advisory Council.
He holds a PhD in sustainable agriculture, a master degree in management and has held senior roles in international bodies, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the CGIAR Fund Council and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa. Dr Austin is an elected fellow of the Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
He previously served as the ACIAR Chief Executive Officer from 2009 to 2016.
General Manager, Partnerships
Dr Suzie Newman oversees multilateral and strategic partnerships at ACIAR. She leads a multidisciplinary team that engages with stakeholders, undertakes impact evaluation and communicates the value of ACIAR-funded initiatives. The team also facilitates partner country engagement through ACIAR’s locally engaged country network.
Dr Newman joined ACIAR from The New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research Limited where she founded and led their International Development Unit. Established in 2017, the Unit has a portfolio of horticultural and seafood sector projects across Asia, Africa, the Pacific and the Caribbean. She has extensive leadership and program management experience in international development having worked in both government and academic sectors. She brings strong technical skills in agribusiness, horticultural production and postharvest management research and extension.
From 2009-2016, she was based in Hanoi, Vietnam leading a series of regional projects in Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Myanmar for ACIAR. She has also worked in Papua New Guinea, China and Africa. She is an experienced leader of complex, inter-disciplinary and multi-partnered projects. In 2012, she was awarded the MARD Medal for her contribution to Agriculture and Rural Development in Vietnam and in 2016 the Vietnam Women’s Union award for contribution to women’s development and empowerment in Vietnam. She holds a PhD in Plant Science (Postharvest Physiology) and a BHortSci (Hons) both from Massey University, New Zealand.
General Manager, Corporate
Mr Paul Morgan is responsible for providing strategic advice and management across finance and procurement, property, human resources, corporate legislation and frameworks, information technology, security and compliance. He joined ACIAR in June 2024, bringing 30 years’ experience leading corporate and enabling programs across the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Paul has represented the Australian government on postings to Damascus, Beirut, Abu Dhabi, Accra, Geneva and Baghdad.
