Vale Brian Brogan
11 March 2008
Brian Brogan, former-resident and former President of the Progress Association was farewelled by family and friends at a funeral today (March 11th). Alastair Crombie, current President, used to 'car share' with Brian from time to time whilst they both worked at the ANU. Brian and Jenny's two children, Tim and Alison, went to school in the village.
Alastair Crombie says:" Brian was a man of striking principle, and reason. He was also very well informed on the affairs of the world, and an engaging and entertaining onversationalist". The Association expresses sincere condolences to Brian's family.
The following summary of his career is 'borrowed' from the ANU.
"Brian Brogan passed away in Indonesia on Sunday 2nd March 2008 en route to a meeting in Jakarta on his latest research project.
Brian left school at an early age, worked at a variety of jobs and put himself through Melbourne University earning an Honours degree in Commerce. He was in the first cohort of teachers in the then new Economics Department of Monash University where he was a lecturer and senior lecturer until he took leave to come to Canberra. He worked for the then Prime Minister Gough Whitlam's staff where he was senior economic advisor until "The Dismissal".
Brian was then appointed to the Chair in Economics at the University of Papua New Guinea and Dean of the Faculty. He returned to Australia in 1987 and became Director of the Asia Program at the ANU's Centre for Development Studies and became Founding Director of the Graduate Studies in Development Administration and since 994 has been a Visiting Fellow at the then National Graduate School of Management and now the ANU College of Business and Economics.
He worked in many countries and with many agencies in the area of public sector reform with special reference to fiscal management and social security reform. He was the Technical Director of AusAID's Regional Economic Policy Support Facility (REPSF), which promoted research on ASEAN Economic Integration. It was the success of REPSF that helped to restore Australia's reputation in the region, being described by one Secretary-General as "the jewel in AusAID's crown". He was currently involved in the China Australia Governance Program's project on funding social security for in-China migrant workers".