Tank engine to partly answer your question, some simple detective work will reveal at least six countries in the Caribbean alone that have no pilot licensing examination system. They all have a validation process which relies on recognition of an ICAO compliant CPL or ATPL, plus a local Air Law exam.
I am sure that similar research would show the same situation in Africa and less developed parts of Asia.
As for more advanced countries, I doubt the average Aussie could pass an ATPL written in Japanese or Mandarin or Spanish. All these places sometimes need pilots. So, we should not tolerate a system that by its sheer cost, excludes Aussies from this market.
Instead of all rolling over and accepting the situation that CASA have created, those affected need to come up with suitable alternatives and argue a case.