About Jubilee

WHAT IS JUBILEE AND WHAT MAKES OUR APPROACH DIFFERENT?
Jubilee is a unique Australian anti-poverty NGO based in Sydney. Through academic-based research we highlight the underlying causes of poverty, particularly in the Asia Pacific region. By lobbying the Australian Government, we work toward changing the policies and structures which perpetuate it.

Many organisations in Australia work to alleviate global poverty. What makes Jubilee Australia different is our commitment to addressing the policies and practices that keep communities and countries in long term poverty. We see a central part of our mission as helping Australian citizens, civil society and decision-makers in government to think more deeply about these issues.

Our goal is to see the establishment of economic policies and structures that promote international stability, equitable and sustainable use of resources, and which enable ordinary citizens in less-developed countries to live lives of dignity and well-being, free from extreme poverty.

These local grassroot initiatives have changed the lives of millions of people. But their impact is being swamped by the global economic tide running against the poor - colossal debt burdens, unbalanced trade rules, unstable international financial system, corruption and lack of transparency, and resource depletion.

Jubilee promotes reform of the global economic policies and practices that disadvantage the poor. We believe that over the long term, our efforts have to influence these broader economic forces if the poor are to do anything more than struggle against the tide.

HOW DOES JUBILEE CHOOSE ITS AREAS OF WORK?
We assess in which areas our work can make the most difference, according to current government policies, issues on the international political agenda and the areas of work not being covered by other NGOs in Australia.

DOES JUBILEE STILL WORK ON DEBT?
Yes, debt remains a flagship campaign of Jubilee for two reasons: firstly the unsustainable accumulation of debt in poorer countries remains one of the biggest obstacles to ending poverty; and secondly rules to prevent predatory and self-interested lending to poorer countries by commercial banks, institutional institutions, export credit agencies and wealthy governments are still missing from our international financial system.

Jubilee is critical of what may be called the ‘debt-dependent development model’. This is not the simplistic belief that debt is always bad: many countries, such as Australian in the late 19th/early20th century, and, more recently, South Korea, have become development success stories despite borrowing heavily in key periods. Rather, it is the more nuanced position that borrowing to facilitate development should be done selectively and with great caution, lest it lock one into a subordinate relationship to richer countries and financial institutions; and that unless the borrowing regime is a mature democracy (or an extremely enlightened autocracy) with a functioning development model, the borrowing will almost certainly produce more problems than solutions.

HOW IS JUBILEE FUNDED?
The monthly pledges and one-off donations of Jubilee supporters around Australia account for almost half of Jubilee’s income. The remainder of Jubilee's income comes from grants by larger charity organisations and community groups including Act for Peace (National Council of Churches), World Vision, Oxfam Australia, Revenue Watch International.

HOW ARE DONATIONS MANAGED?
Donations to Jubilee Australia are managed and audited by the National Council of Churches in Australia.

ARE DONATIONS TAX-DEDUCTIBLE?
Unfortunately, donations to Jubilee are not tax-deductible. Under current Australian legislation our work does not qualify for ‘charitable’ status.

HOW DOES JUBILEE SPEND DONATIONS?
Approximately $8.50 out of every $10 donated to Jubilee is spent on core work – this includes researching, campaigning, media work, attending international strategy meetings, lobbying in Canberra. The remaining funds are used for administration and marketing. We keep these costs low through generous in-kind donations from friends of Jubilee.

WHAT ARE SOME OF JUBILEE'S MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS ON DEBT?
In 1999, through the public pressure and lobbying of members of the Jubilee 2000 Coalition, the Australian government pledged 100% debt forgiveness for countries that qualified for relief under the IMF and World Bank HIPC scheme.

In 2004 the government fulfilled this commitment, first cancelling the bilateral debts of the Central America country of Nicaragua worth $5.4 million, followed by cancellation of Ethiopia’s bilateral debt of $7.9 million.

In 2007, following research and a sustained period of lobbying, the Australian Labor Party agreed to implement Australia’s first ever debt-for-development swap with Indonesia. The initiative, through The Global Fund to fight HIV, TB and Malaria, will see $75 million of export credit debt cancelled by Australia in return for Indonesia investing half into the treatment of tuberculosis, to help the 500,000 Indonesian living with the disease.

Over the last two years, Jubilee has taken an increasingly active role in monitoring current Australian investment overseas. This work has focused on the role of the government in supporting questionable mining projects in the Asia-Pacific and even in Africa, and is starting to raise consciousness in the community about the ethical problems associated with such practices.

WHAT ARE SOME OF JUBILEE'S OTHER RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS?
In 2008 Jubilee was one of the first Australian civil society groups to respond to the financial crisis. In 2009 Jubilee held a forum at the Australian Labor Party’s National Conference on ‘A Global Response to a Global Crisis’, and through an alliance with academics from two leading Australian Universities, has since lobbied decision makers in the Australian government for strong action at the G20.

In 2009, Jubilee released our major research report, Risky Business.
In 2010, Jubilee is leading the Australian coalition on the Robin Hood Tax campaign.

DOES JUBILEE HAVE ANY POLITICAL OR RELIGIOUS AFFILIATIONS?
Jubilee has no formal affiliation with any political or religious group, but we continue to enjoy working closely with members of faith communities in Australia.

WHERE DOES THE NAME 'JUBILEE' COME FROM?
The worldwide Jubilee movement emerged from a group of people in the UK who were inspired by the way the Jubilee Laws in the Old Testament provided legal protection for the poor and ensured that poverty didn’t become generational.