World Vision Australia (WVA) is an ecumenical Christian non-governmental organisation based in Melbourne, Australia. It is a part of the World Vision International Partnership led by World Vision International. WVA is Australia's largest overseas aid and development organisation, operating primarily to assist overseas communities living in poverty. It also carries out development work in Australia with First Nations communities.

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World Vision Australia

Founded	1966
Founder	World Vision (USA)
Type	Non-Government Organisation
Focus	Well-being of all people, especially children.
Location	Melbourne, Australia (World Vision Australia Support Office)
Area served	38 countries
Method	Transformational Development through emergency relief, community development and policy and advocacy
Key people	Daniel Wordsworth (CEO)
Revenue	A$583.6 million (2019)
Employees	372 (2020)
Website	www.worldvision.com.au

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WVA is registered as a charity by the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission as a public benevolent institution, and is endorsed as a deductible gift recipient.^[1]

World Vision was founded in 1950 in the United States by Rev. Robert Pierce, a Baptist missionary who had worked in China, focusing on aiding children in need. The first child sponsorship scheme commenced in 1953 to aid children in Korea following the Korean war and subsequently established in other countries.

WVA was founded in 1966 after a proposal to start a new office in Australia by Bernard Barron, the head of World Vision Canada, and after startup funds were provided by the headquarters of World Vision in the United States. Graeme Irvine, an evangelical Christian, was at the head of the Australian branch of World Vision. The first project of WVA related to Vietnam.^[2]

World Vision International was founded in 1977 to restructure the World Vision organisation worldwide, and the head of WVA, Graeme Irvine, was among the signers of the Declaration of Internationalization in 1978, which declared a set of objectives for World Vision in its operations throughout the world. In 1988, Graeme Irvine became the first non-American president of World Vision International.

After its establishment, WVA first focused on meeting the needs of refugees in Indochina and of people recovering from disasters in Bangladesh and in several African countries. In the 1970s, its focus broadened from assisting the individual child to include community development. Since the 1980s, a "welfare" approach has gradually changed to a more collaborative relationship where communities work alongside World Vision to improve their lives and take control of their futures.^[3]

World Vision Australia, like all branches of World Vision, is a Christian organisation that bases its beliefs and its activities on the Christian faith and draws on a biblical framework to inform its work.^[4] The Declaration of Internationalization referred to above included a Statement of Faith that set the theological framework within which World Vision International and its national offices (including WVA) operate.^[5] The Statement of Faith corresponds to the Statement of Faith^[6] put forward by the US National Association of Evangelicals as standard for their evangelical convictions. Like other members of the World Vision Partnership, WVA does not make Christian belief or observance a condition of providing assistance to a person or community, but provides aid regardless of the recipient's religion or beliefs.^[7] WVA is a signatory to the ACFID Code of Conduct, that requires that development activities be separately delivered and reported from non-development (including religious) activities.^[8] WVA's development activities seek to improve the well-being of those in need without favouritism or discrimination by race, religion, culture, or political persuasion.

In the 2020 financial year, World Vision Australia reported^[9] raising AU$587.9 million; $306.6 million from cash donations and grants, and $281.3 million from non-monetary donations and gifts. In the same reporting year they disbursed AU$589.1 million, of which $522.8 million went to development programming and $66.3 million on overheads.

In the 2017 financial year, World Vision Australia reported^[10] total income of $404.1 million, derived from child sponsorship (38%), Australian Government (DFAT) grants (12%), appeals, donations and gifts (9%), overseas grants (11%) and other cash revenue (6%). Non-monetary donations and gifts were received to the value of $98.7 million or 24% of total revenue.

Overseas grants are received from philanthropic organisations, other government aid programs and United Nations agencies such as the World Food Programme, UNICEF and UNHCR (responsible for children and refugees).

First of all World Vision Australia is member of the World Vision Partnership.

World Vision Australia is a full member of the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID), and is a signatory to ACFID's Code of Conduct, which defines the minimum standards of governance, management and accountability for development NGOs. It works in cooperation with other government and non-government agencies in Australia and overseas. In addition to AusAID funding, World Vision Australia makes submissions regarding government policies relating to aid and development.^[24]

The organisation works with local and overseas churches, and with organisations such as the World Health Organization, UNHCR and UNICEF.^[25] World Vision Australia also collaborates with Oxfam.^[26] support and advocate for the work of World Vision. The Ambassadors are drawn from Australia's elite athletes, actors, journalists and performers and include the international actor Hugh Jackman and former Australian Test Cricket captain Adam Gilchrist.^[27]

In February 2012, the Israel Law Center notified World Vision Australia that it support of the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC) could be being redirected to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which is a designated terrorist organization in Australia. WVA "suspended its dealings" with the UAWC pending an outcome of the investigation.^[28][29] WVA resumed working with UAWC after AusAID and World Vision found the allegations were unfounded.^[30] The Israel Law Center considers World Vision's response to be a whitewash and maintains that the allegations have not been refuted.^[31]

In 2013 WVA was criticised for funding a soccer field in Jenin in the West Bank that was named after a former militant PLO leader. WVA maintained that the field had a different (non-controversial) name, and that the naming of the area surrounding the soccer field after the PLO leader was done by Palestinian authorities after construction and naming of the field had been completed.^[32]

In August 2016, in response to the June 2016 arrest of Mohammad El Halabi, manager of World Vision in Gaza, by the Israeli authorities on charges of misappropriating funds,^[33][34][35] the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade immediately suspended all funding of Palestinian programs by World Vision.^[36] World Vision Australia chief executive, Tim Costello, accepted this move as being the correct thing to do pending a proper investigation of the allegations.^[37][38] A review of the Australian government came to the conclusion that no Australian taxpayer money was misappropriated.^[39]