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India
Mr. Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received concerning the Vishwa Hindu Parishad Organisation's attack on a Christian meeting in India; and if he will make a statement. [105576]
Mr. Hain: We are aware of reports of attacks on Christians in India and have received many letters on this subject. We have made clear our concern about attacks on religious minorities to the Indian authorities on a number of occasions. I raised this most recently with my Indian interlocutors, including the Indian Minister of State for External Affairs, during my visit there in November.
Indonesia
Mr. Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his policy on extending the arms embargo on Indonesia; and if he will make a statement. [105578]
Mr. Hain:
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Ealing, North (Mr. Pound) on 17 January 2000, Official Report, column 325W.
19 Jan 2000 : Column: 477W
Debt Relief
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what is the role of her Department in monitoring and measuring the bilateral debt relief programme. [105681]
Mr. Foulkes: Our Department has no direct role in monitoring and measuring the use of the bilateral debt relief which is provided as part of an international agreement, including that given under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. We strongly welcome the sharpened poverty focus of the HIPC Initiative agreed in September 1999. In order to benefit under the enhanced Initiative, HIPC countries will have to produce a poverty reduction strategy (PRS), based around the achievement of the international development targets. Our Department is closely engaged in the international discussions on the development of these strategies, including how they will be monitored. We place great importance on both civil society and the international community being able to monitor their implementation, and we recognise that increased international efforts will be required in this area. In November 1999, the Partnership in Statistics for Development in the 21st Century was launched. Its aims are to provide statistical assistance to HIPC countries in producing their poverty reduction strategies and to develop sustainable statistical capacity in the longer term, to inform and support pro-poor policy making, and programme design. DFID is devoting additional resources to achieve these aims, both bilaterally and multilaterally.
Bilateral debt relief provided on aid loans owed to our Department is given in the context of our development partnership, and monitored in the same way as all other programmes and projects. The Government have recently announced that they will provide 100 per cent. relief on all the bilateral debt owed to the Export Credit Guarantee Department by qualifying HIPC countries. No additional conditionality will be attached to the provision of this relief nor will special efforts be made to monitor its use. We are confident that the conditions of the revised HIPC Initiative are sufficient to guarantee that monies freed up will be spent on poverty reduction.
Mrs. Gillan:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if the British Council will be involved in monitoring the outcome of debt relief measures. [105683]
Mr. Foulkes:
The British Council will not be involved in monitoring the outcome of debt relief measures.
Mr. Dobbin:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the countries that will benefit from debt relief, stating (a) by how much in each case and (b) their order of priority. [105235]
Mr. Foulkes:
The following 41 countries are classified as Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC):
19 Jan 2000 : Column: 478W
Angola, Benin, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, Kenya, Lao PDR, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique,
Myanmar, Nicaragua, Niger, Rwanda, Sao Tome, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Vietnam, Yemen, and Zambia.
To date, debt relief has been provided (in net present value terms) under the HIPC Initiative as follows:
| Countries | Date | $ million |
|---|---|---|
| Uganda | April 1998 | 347 |
| Bolivia | September 1998 | 448 |
| Guyana | May 1999 | 256 |
| Mozambique | July 1999 | 1,716 |
No other country has received debt relief under HIPC to date, and it is not possible to provide figures on what each will receive in the future. Following the revisions agreed last September, the HIPC Initiative will provide faster, deeper and wider debt relief. This will amount to around $50 billion (in nominal terms), which is more than twice as much as under the original framework. The countries listed will receive additional debt relief, and those countries yet to receive relief will be assessed against the new debt sustainability ratios.
Countries not classified as HIPC may nevertheless receive assistance with their debt from the Paris Club of official bilateral creditors. There are a variety of terms which may be offered to a debtor country, in the form of debt reduction for the poorest countries and debt rescheduling.
The Government are pressing for the speedy implementation of the revised HIPC framework. Our target, which was agreed by the international community last year, is for three-quarters of eligible HIPC countries to be receiving relief on their debts by the end of 2000.
Mrs. Gillan:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans she has to visit Kosovo. [105688]
Clare Short:
I have no plans to do so.
Mrs. Gillan:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the number of casual staff employed by her Department for every quarter since 1 May 1997. [105682]
| Date | Number of casual staff in post (17) |
|---|---|
| 1 October 1999 | 30 |
| 1 July 1999 | 40 |
| 1 April 1999 | 32 |
| 1 January 1999 | 29 |
| 1 October 1998 | 32 |
| 1 July 1998 | 40 |
| 1 April 1998 | 39 |
| 1 January 1998 | 39 |
| 1 October 1997 | 40 |
| 1 July 1997 | 43 |
(17) Data is available only for the total number of casual staff in post as at the beginning of each quarter. The figures are provided on this basis
19 Jan 2000 : Column: 479W
Departmental Website
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what was the cost of (a) setting up and (b) updating her Department's website; and how often it is updated. [105692]
Mr. Foulkes: The Department for International Development's (DFID) website was set up in 1997 at an initial cost of £10,000. The annual maintenance cost is £12,000 and development costs for 1998-99 were £3,500. The website is updated regularly, usually on a daily basis.
Poverty Reduction
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the role of the IMF in poverty reduction. [105236]
Mr. Foulkes: At the Annual Meetings of the World bank and IMF in September 1999, as part of the discussion on revision of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative it was agreed that all low-income countries would produce poverty reduction strategies (PRS). The process of developing these strategies will be led by national Governments, and involve discussion with civil society and the international community, including the IMF. They will integrate macro-economic objectives, structural reforms and social policies and programmes, and centre on the achievement of the international development targets. The IMF have committed themselves to providing their assistance to the poorest countries within the framework of these poverty reduction strategies; as a sign of this new focus, the Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility (ESAF) has been redesignated as the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF).
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