Ms MAY —My question is addressed to the Minister for Trade. Could the minister advise the House of recent initiatives taken by the government to prepare for the reconstruction of East Timor?

Mr VAILE (Trade) —I thank the honourable member for McPherson for her question. I am sure all members of the House would be aware that the East Timorese people are currently dealing with a widespread humanitarian crisis. Thousands of East Timorese are hungry, sick and displaced, property and infrastructure have been destroyed and the most basic of services that we take for granted in this country just do not exist. Just as Australia was well prepared to make a contribution to INTERFET, we also need to be well prepared to make a contribution to the international effort to rebuild East Timor. To help the Australian government monitor the situation and ensure the effective delivery of Australian aid, we have located an AusAID officer in Dili. Next week, I understand, the United Nations will be embarking on a major exercise to coordinate the restoration of these services, and a World Bank team will be visiting East Timor to assess the situation there.

Based on Australia's expertise in the field of multilateral procurement, our strong record of development assistance to East Timor and our proximity to the territory, the government believes that Australia and Australian companies are in a position to make an important contribution in this task. This morning I convened a forum in Canberra to provide potential Australian suppliers with a comprehensive overview of the reconstruction requirements and how they can contribute to the vital task of rebuilding East Timor. Over 450 representatives from Australian business and government agencies participated in the forum—and I should note that the member for the Northern Territory was also in attendance. Speakers at that forum this morning giving information about how the international process will work included representatives from AusAID, Austrade, the United Nations, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the Northern Territory government.

There is a very serious and difficult task in front of the international community to rebuild and reconstruct East Timor, and Australia obviously will need to play a vital role in that. It was pleasing to see the commitment from the business community today to understand how the process will work under the auspices of the United Nations.