Co-Chairs of the Bali Process
Senator The Honourable Penny Wong, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs
Senator The Honourable Penny Wong, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, has held the role since May 2022. Previously, Minister Wong served as Shadow Foreign Minister for six years. In 2013, Minister Wong was elected Leader of the Government in the Senate and after the change of government in 2013, became Leader of the Opposition in the Senate – the first woman to hold either of these roles. After the Australian federal election of 2010, Minister Wong was appointed as Minister for Finance and Deregulation. In this role, Minister Wong and the Australian Treasurer delivered three Budgets in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis. Minister Wong also implemented a policy to ensure women are considered for appointments to senior positions in government agencies and corporations.
Her Excellency Retno Lestari Priansari Marsudi, Indonesian Minister for Foreign Affairs
Her Excellency Retno Lestari Priansari Marsudi is the first woman to serve as Minister for Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, and was inaugurated on 27 October 2014. Minister Marsudi joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1986 and has served in various posts, including Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to the Kingdom of the Netherlands (2012-2014), Director General of America and Europe (2008-2012), Ambassador to the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Iceland (2005-2008), Director of Western Europe (2003-2005), and Director of American and European Intra- and Inter-Regional Cooperation (2001-2003). Minister Marsudi has also served at the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra (1990-1994) and in The Hague (1997-2001).
Bali Process Senior Official Co-Chairs
Ambassador Lynn Bell, Australian Ambassador to Counter Modern Slavery, People Smuggling and Human Trafficking
Ambassador Lynn Bell has been Australia’s Ambassador to Counter Modern Slavery, People Smuggling and Human Trafficking and Senior Official Co-Chair of the Bali Process since July 2023. Ambassador Bell is a career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and was most recently Australia’s Assistant Secretary, Crisis Preparedness and Management Branch. She has previously served as a Senior Adviser at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and overseas in Papua New Guinea.
Ambassador Tri Tharyat, Indonesian Director-General for Multilateral Cooperation
Ambassador Tri Tharyat has held the role of Director-General for Multilateral Cooperation since April 2022. Ambassador Tharyat is a career diplomat who joined the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1991. His last position was as a Senior Adviser on Political, Legal and Security Affairs. Previously, Ambassador Tharyat has served in Indonesian missions in Nairobi, New York (Permanent Mission to the UN), and Paris. He also served as the Consul General in Hong Kong, and Ambassador in Kuwait City.
Meetings and Working Groups
Ministerial Conferences
Ministerial Conferences are held every two years to bring together Ministers from the Bali Process Members and Observers, to review progress against objectives, and to confirm priorities and future areas of focus – which are then agreed and set out in an updated Declaration and Strategy for Cooperation.
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Senior Officials Meetings
Senior Officials Meetings occur annually with the Ad Hoc Group. Senior Officials Meetings of the full membership of the Bali Process also take place ahead of Ministerial Conferences. Meetings include presentations from Member States and Member Organisations, Bali Process Working Groups, the Regional Support Office, and the Government and Business Forum and Observers. The meetings enable a review of developments in the Bali Process region, and progress of activities undertaken. The presentations and discussions are used to shape the agenda for the next Ministerial Conference.
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Bali Process Steering Group
The Bali Process Steering Group is responsible for ensuring Bali Process objectives and priorities reflect regional needs, by taking into account emerging trends and issues. The Steering Group sets the agenda for Ministerial Conferences, and includes Ministerial and Senior Official level representation from Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand and Thailand and senior representatives of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The group also directs changes to the Bali Process governance – for example, determining any expansion to the Ad Hoc Group membership.
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Ad Hoc Group Meetings
The Ad Hoc Group mechanism allows greater responsiveness in addressing situations impacting rates of trafficking in persons and people smuggling on a case-by-case basis. The group consists of a smaller membership of states who may take collective lead on an issue and maintains a regular program of working group level activities.
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Bali Process Working Groups
The Bali Process Working Groups bring together practitioners and experts from Bali Process Member States and Organisations to progress work around key issues. Dialogue and consensus around new, collaborative approaches are driven through the Working Group on Trafficking in Persons, the Working Group on Disruption of Criminal Networks involved in People Smuggling and Human Trafficking, the Technical Experts Group on Returns and Reintegration, and the Taskforce on Planning and Preparedness.
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Government and Business Forum
The Bali Process Government and Business Forum (GABF) provides a strategic platform for constructive engagement with the private sector, bringing together influential business leaders and ministers from across the Bali Process membership. The Forum aims to expand legal and legitimate opportunities for labour migration by promoting and implementing good labour practices throughout supply chains.
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Bali Process Consultation Mechanism
The Consultation Mechanism was established following the 2015 irregular migration events in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal. Following the crisis, Ministers at the Sixth Bali Process Ministerial Conference in 2016 acknowledged the need for more agile and timely responses by Bali Process members on time-sensitive migration issues. Ministers agreed to create a mechanism that would authorise the Co-Chairs to consult and convene meetings to discuss specific urgent irregular migration issues and consult with members to formulate possible regional responses. Participation in the meetings is voluntary and non-binding.
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Bali Process Membership
The Bali Process, co-chaired by Indonesia and Australia, has 45 Member States, and four Member Organisations - the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), as well as 18 Observer States and nine Observer Organisations.
The Regional Support Office
The Regional Support Office of the Bali Process provides a unique function and resource – delivering practical, on-the-ground support for the Bali Process and its Working Groups.