News

IM4DC’s 2014 program has started strongly with courses in Zambia, South Africa, The Philippines and Australia attracting 226 participants from 35 countries. 

In Southern Africa, IM4DC is running four events in the weeks before, during and after Mining Indaba, including the new Emerging Leaders program being presented in partnership with the African Minerals Development Centre. 

We are looking forward to participating in the Mining Indaba Conference and associated events presented by the African Minerals Development Centre, Australian Government, World Bank, Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development, International Council on Mining and Metals and World Gold Council. 

The Australian Government has put “economic diplomacy” at the centre of Australia’s international engagement, drawing together its foreign, trade and development activities and diplomatic resources to help deliver greater prosperity for partner countries and Australia.

A key delivery mechanism of the economic diplomacy agenda is “Aid for Trade”, which is development assistance that helps developing countries to grow their economies through increased trade and investment. This is at the core of what IM4DC does in helping to build the capacity of our partners to host exploration and mining in ways that deliver sustainable benefits to nations and people.

IM4DC is pleased that Aid for Trade activities by Australia are set to be scaled up, focusing on building capacity in developing countries in such fields as trade and investment policy and negotiations, better infrastructure, more efficient and effective services, better regulation, greater business capability, and enhanced access to finance. Such activities both add to and enhance the work of IM4DC in building capability in all aspects of mining governance. 

Finally, the Australian Government has commissioned a review of IM4DC and its first two years of operation. The review team will be contacting a range of stakeholders within partner countries and Australia to seek their views on the effectiveness, efficiency and impacts of IM4DC’s programs. I ask stakeholders who are contacted to respond to the reviewers with the same openness that IM4DC experiences from our partners.