Australia DFAT's top private contractors

Several weeks ahead of the Abbott government’s May budget announcement, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s implementing partners are bracing for further cuts to Australia’s foreign aid — on top of the 11 billion Australian dollars ($8.6 billion) in slashes so far. What is often overlooked, however, is that DFAT’s private contractors had been feeling the squeeze long before the Abbott government reversed course on the previous Labor government’s commitment to boost official development assistance to 0.5 percent of gross national income. Between 2005-06 and 2012-13, the share of Australian ODA channeled through private sector partners fell sharply from 41 percent to 19 percent. Buoyed by a rising aid budget, the Australian Agency for International Development’s private sector contract spending did remain roughly flat over that period. The massive reduction in the proportion of Australian ODA directed through private sector partners was driven in large part by AusAID’s efforts to broaden and diversify its partner base, a move initiated by the last conservative government. AusAID was amalgamated into DFAT not long after Tony Abbott led the conservatives back to power in September 2013. Despite the Abbott government’s renewed emphasis on private sector engagement, there seems to be little appetite in Canberra to return to the days when private contractors were the dominant force in the Australian aid industry. Last year, a widely anticipated Australian Senate report backed the prevailing government position that “aid should always be allocated to the most effective mechanism for delivery” even as it urged additional funding for Australian nongovernmental organizations. In the latest in our series on top donor agency partners, Devex ranks DFAT’s leading private contractors by total contract value as of the financial year 2013-14, based on Australian government data. Only contracts valued at AU$100,000 and above and signed in financial year 2013-14, or those not fully performed by June 30, 2014, are listed. In our ranking, we only counted contracts for development programs and, at the same time, excluded contracts awarded to consortiums and joint ventures. Strikingly, 11 of the top 15 DFAT private contractors are based in Australia, proof positive of the competitive advantage they hold in the Australian aid industry despite Canberra’s long-standing untied aid policy. 1. Coffey International Development Headquarters: Sydney, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$600 million Number of contracts: 21 Largest contract amount: AU$103.4 million for an economic and public sector program in Papua New Guinea 2. GRM International Headquarters: Brisbane, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$527.9 million Number of contracts: 26 Largest contract amount: AU$134.5 million for a poverty reduction support facility in Indonesia 3. Cardno Headquarters: Brisbane, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$482 million Number of contracts: 29 Largest contract amount: AU108.3 million for a quality school systems program in Indonesia 4. HK Logistics Headquarters: Sydney, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$321.8 million Number of contracts: 17 Largest contract amount: AU$297 million for the management and facilitation of a health and education procurement facility in Papua New Guinea 5. URS Australia (now part of AECOM) Headquarters: Multiple offices in Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$232.4 million Number of contracts: 20 Largest contract amount: AU$115.2 million for a civil society strengthening program in Papua New Guinea 6. SMEC Headquarters: Melbourne, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$229.9 million Number of contracts: 3 Largest contract amount: AU$171 million for an infrastructure initiative facility in Indonesia 7. Norton Rose Australia (formerly Deacons Australia) Headquarters: Multiple offices in Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$82 million Number of contracts: 1 Largest contract amount: AU$82 million for the Australia Indonesia Partnership for Economic Governance Facility 8. Cowater Headquarters: Ottawa, Canada DFAT contract funding: AU$76.5 million Number of contracts: 2 Largest contract amount: AU$57.3 million for the Empowering Indonesian Women for Poverty Reduction Program 9. Scope Global (formerly Austraining International) Headquarters: Adelaide, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$56.5 million Number of contracts: 3 Largest contract amount: AU$29.8 million for the Australian Volunteers for International Development program 10. Aurecon Headquarters: Melbourne, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$49.2 million Number of contracts: 10 Largest contract amount: AU$43.9 million for the second phase of a rural water supply and sanitation program in East Timor 11. Charles Kendall and Partners Headquarters: London, United Kingdom DFAT contract funding: AU$47.1 million Number of contracts: 4 Largest contract amount: AU$45 million for procurement and logistics support in East Timor 12. Louis Berger Group Headquarters: Morristown, New Jersey, United States DFAT contract funding: AU$34.6 million Number of contracts: 1 Largest contract amount: AU$34.6 million for the second phase of a provincial road management facility in the Philippines 13. Abt JTA Headquarters: Brisbane, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$25.5 million Number of contracts: 1 Largest contract amount: AU$25.5 million for a health sector support program in Fiji 14. Land Equity International Headquarters: Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia DFAT contract funding: AU$21.7 million Number of contracts: 1 Largest contract amount: AU$21.7 million for a land reform program in Vanuatu 15. Maxwell Stamp PLC Headquarters: London, United Kingdom DFAT contract funding: AU$21.2 million Number of contracts: 1 Largest contract amount: AU$21.2 million for a social protection and sustainable livelihoods program in Laos We’ll dig into the data on DFAT’s top NGO and university contractors next month, so stay tuned to Devex. See our 2013 ranking of AusAID’s top private sector partners and our full list of top global development organizations. Check out more funding trends analyses online, and subscribe to Money Matters to receive the latest contract award and shortlist announcements, and procurement and fundraising news.