Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Assistant Minister for the Public Service, Assistant Minister to the Attorney-General
Introduction
Thank you for inviting me today.
It is a real privilege to celebrate your success in the Australian Public Service Indo-Pacific Executive Development Program.
Navigating and stewarding Australia's future and place in our region.
Our connection with the Indo-Pacific is not just geographical.
It is steeped in history, and for many, deeply personal.
Let me take you back around 65,000 years into our shared past.
Long before modern maps or borders.
Long before Europeans set foot in Australia.
Another set of travellers arrived.
Low sea levels made continents and islands much closer.
Small groups moved slowly over generations.
On foot across our shared land mass with New Guinea, or using simple rafts embarking on a perilous journey.
Over millennia, these intrepid travellers made Australia their home.
They built deep connections with the land and sea, forming a system of cultures and beliefs.
Today, the longest living culture in the world.
Fast-forward to recent times, after the World War II, Australia embraced a new, independent foreign policy that brought us closer to our neighbours.
We turned our focus to the people, the economies and the culture that surround us.
Students from across Asia came to study in Australia, through the Colombo plan, building lifelong connections.
We embarked on the first formal dialogue partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
This period of cooperation reinforced our identity as a vital part of the Indo-Pacific family.
Importance of the Indo-Pacific Region today
The Indo-Pacific is more than just our geographic neighbourhood - it is central to Australia's future.
As public servants, you contribute to one of Australia's highest foreign policy priorities.
Working together to address climate change, economic growth, and security.
All with a shared vision of a peaceful and sustainable region.
Today we are investing in stronger partnerships with nations like India, through the Australia-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
We are showing our commitment to safety in the region through the Quad and AUKUS.
We entered a security alliance with the United States, known as ANZUS.
We are building regional prosperity through trade agreements like the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.
We are working closely with Pacific partners.
Through deeper partnerships such as our Falepili Union with Tuvalu.
By building people-to-people links through the Pacific Engagement Visa and sporting cooperation.
And through stepping up support for climate finance to enable Pacific countries to adapt to climate impacts.
We want to see a region is peaceful, prosperous and resilient.
Our personal connections
Australia has built a vibrant multicultural society.
And we are all the richer for it.
For many of us have ties to the Indo-Pacific that are deeply personal.
Parents that came as refugees or migrants.
Young people who came to study and forge careers.
For me, growing up in Western Australia, Indonesia was closer to home than Canberra.
I first travelled to Papua New Guinea and Indonesia as an adviser to then Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd.
As Assistant Minister for the Public Service, I have met with public Sector Leaders from Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Indonesia.
Australia is a proud member of APEC.
Just last week Prime Minister Albanese attended APEC Leaders week.
Through APEC, Australia is working closely with our partners across the Asia-Pacific.
Our collective goal is to increase regional economic integration and free and open trade to in turn promote economic growth.
Just recently, I met with a delegation from the University of Papua New Guinea and the Somare Institute of Leaderships and Governance.
Like you, PNG public servants visit the Institute to build their skills and knowledge.
Value of the program
The APS Indo-Pacific Executive Development Program is an investment in the leadership and skills of our public servants.
Securing Australia's place in our region requires support and investment in the APS.
Investment in skills that build resilience, protect Australia and secure our region.
Like those travellers before you, I hope the program has given you the courage to navigate the fast-changing Indo-Pacific landscape.
It has prepared you to strengthen ties and build relationships as a trusted partner.
It has built your understanding of policies that invest in our region and relationships to build our collective resilience.
It has equipped you to listen and respond to the priorities of our regional partners.
It has helped you consider the implications of climate change and energy transition.
Closing
Our Indo-Pacific connections are not new.
They are steeped in history.
Your job as public servants is to nurture these connections.
Nurture them to flourish in an increasingly complex world.
I know everyone here is looking forward to your Capstone project presentations today.
Be proud of your hard work.
Your insights are essential contributions to our collective knowledge.
They are the beginning of applying these valuable lessons in the real world.
Your role is one of stewardship.
Improving our region and the people in it.
Like those first travellers, you are traversing a new path and carry on a legacy of innovation, courage and curiosity.
And for that, I thank you.
