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EU Aid Budget

12. Mr. Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when she last met the EU Commissioner for International Development to discuss the EU aid budget. [147649]

Clare Short: I last met EC Development Commissioner Poul Nielson at the EC Development Council on 10 November. I shall be meeting him again tomorrow, 8 February. We have worked closely with Commissioner Nielson to put in place a major reform programme to increase the poverty focus and effectiveness of European Commission development efforts. The new EC Development Policy Statement and action programme are a great advance. We are now focusing our efforts on implementation.

Administration of Justice

13. Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what help she is giving to poorer countries to improve the administration of justice and prisons. [147650]

Clare Short: Insecurity caused by crime, is--as the Voices of the Poor study showed--a major concern for poor people, ranking in importance with hunger, unemployment and lack of safe drinking water. We are supporting programmes of reform to make the justice system as a whole more responsive to the needs of poor people in Bangladesh, Jamaica, Malawi, Nigeria and Uganda.

Our new approach designed to make justice systems work for the poor is described in detail in the DFID publication "Justice and Poverty Reduction", which has been placed in the Library of both Houses.

Palestine

14. Mr. Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on efforts to combat poverty in the west bank and Gaza strip. [147651]

Clare Short: Britain is providing £25 million of assistance to the Palestinian Authority to help reduce poverty and build an accountable, democratic government. However, continuing Israeli closures are causing widespread hardship, economic decline and delays to humanitarian aid.

Conflict Prevention (Africa)

15. Mr. Patrick Hall: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how her Department is contributing to conflict prevention and resolution in Africa. [147652]

Clare Short: Out of 47 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, 20 are in conflict or recovering from conflict affecting 20 per cent. of population. This is a cause of deep suffering and a major barrier to development.

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We contribute to UN and EU efforts to prevent and resolve conflict. We work in many countries to help build democratic systems and respect for human rights in order to prevent the growth of poverty and inequality that fuels conflict.

A joint strategy for conflict prevention and resolution is currently being developed by DFID, FCO and MOD, as part of the arrangements for the Africa Conflict Prevention Joint Pool.

Congo

16. Mr. David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what financial aid is being given to the Democratic Republic of Congo; and if she will make a statement. [147653]

Clare Short: The UK committed £3 million in humanitarian assistance to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in financial year 2000-01. These funds have been targeted on health and nutrition, assistance to refugees and other vulnerable groups, and rehabilitation of child soldiers in the eastern provinces. We also contribute £4.2 million of assistance through the EU.

The war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has caused untold suffering and damage in the country and in the surrounding region. We will continue to provide humanitarian assistance and to use our influence to try to promote an end to the DRC's conflict. We continue to support the Lusaka Peace Agreement of July 1999 as the most realistic formula for peace, and in all our contacts with signatories to the Lusaka Agreement we urge its implementation. UK bilateral assistance includes technical and financial support for the peace-keeping and political aspects of the Agreement.

17. Mr. Walter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on bilateral and European Union aid to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [147654]

Clare Short: The UK committed £3 million in humanitarian assistance to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in financial year 2000-01. These funds have been targeted on health and nutrition, assistance to refugees and other vulnerable groups, and rehabilitation of child soldiers in the eastern provinces. We also contribute £4.2 million of assistance through the EU.

The war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has caused untold suffering and damage in the country and in the surrounding region. We will continue to provide humanitarian assistance and to use our influence to try to promote an end to the DRC's conflict. We continue to support the Lusaka Peace Agreement of July 1999 as the most realistic formula for peace, and in all our contacts with signatories to the Lusaka Agreement we urge its implementation. UK bilateral assistance includes technical and financial support for the peace-keeping and political aspects of the Agreement.

The European Community Humanitarian Office provided over 25 million euro of humanitarian assistance to the DRC in 2000 and intends to make 35 million euro available in 2001. The EU will also fund a longer-term rehabilitation strategy for the DRC, including projects in the justice, institutional reform, sanitation, agriculture and

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transport sectors. The first of these projects is planned to start in 2002, and focus on the judicial system. It will cost 28 million euro over four years.

India

19. Dan Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on her Department's support for poverty reduction in India. [147657]

Clare Short: We are providing over £100 million in development assistance to India this year. This figure is projected at least to triple over the next four years. One in three of the world's poor lives in India, and there are substantial opportunities to work effectively with government and civil society to reduce poverty.

Our programme in India is focused on helping government, at both national and state level, to deliver pro-poor policies and services. We have identified four partner states committed to poverty reduction, with whom we are working closely, including on their programmes of fiscal and public sector reform. We are also working, both at the national level and in our partner states, on increasing access to basic education, health, water and sanitation services for the poor, promoting better management of the natural and physical environment, and promoting greater empowerment of the poor, especially women and members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.

In addition to long term development assistance, we remain ready to respond quickly and generously to requests for emergency relief as we have done in the case of the recent catastrophic earthquake in Gujarat.

A copy of our India Country Strategy Paper is in the Library of the House.

Land Mines

20. Helen Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on progress in eradicating land mines. [147658]

Clare Short: In late 1997 I pledged to double my Department's annual bilateral expenditure on humanitarian mine action from under £5 million in 1997-98 to £10 million in 2000-01. This expenditure target has been achieved, based on a three year policy which has four main objectives: promoting the globalisation of the Ottawa Convention; undertaking effective mine clearance projects and capacity building in developing countries; strengthening international response; and supporting technological innovation.

Progress reports on the Humanitarian Mine Action programme were placed in the Library of the House in February 1999 and September 2000. A further report, planned for mid-2001, will summarise the three-year programme and evaluate its impact.

Southern Africa

21. Mr. Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on her Department's priorities for operations in southern Africa. [147659]

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Clare Short: In addition to our programme in South Africa which is focused on governance, health, education and sustainable livelihoods, we are strengthening our regional focus on trade and co-operation, HIV/AIDS, water and enterprise development. In developing our future strategy, we will consult regionally to develop a clearer analysis of the regional dimensions of poverty. This will look at economic interdependence, trade, migration, conflict, disease and the use of scarce natural resources.

Third World Debt

22. Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations her Department made to the IMF regarding levels of third world indebtedness. [147660]

Clare Short: The UK works closely with the IMF and the World bank in implementing the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Last week, l met the Managing Director, Horst Kohler, and the World bank President, Jim Wolfensohn, to discuss debt and other development issues.

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