After 11 years of inactivity, 5 weeks before the election, and one week after Federal Labor’s announcement, the Howard Government is finally coming on board to realise the importance of assisting people with disabilities in developing countries.

Not to be churlish, while the decision is 11 years late, it is nevertheless more than welcome.

It now guarantees that whoever is elected, the long neglected issues facing the poorest of the poor in developing countries - people with disabilities - will move to the centre of Australia’s aid program as they should have more than a decade ago.