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Sustainable Development

Mr. Love: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what proposals her Department has to meet the targets and outcomes agreed at the recent World Summit on Sustainable Development. [77701]

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Clare Short: The World Summit strengthened the international community's commitment to the Millennium Development Goals and added an important new target on access to sanitation. The international summits of the last two years have established a clear international consensus on the action needed to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable development. We now need a period of intensive implementation. The world community must deliver on the promises it has made. My Department will play its full part in making this happen.

Sri Lanka

Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans there are by members of her Department to visit Sri Lanka to discuss possible assistance for redevelopment; and if she will make a statement. [77702]

Clare Short: My Department maintains an office within the British High Commission in Colombo. Staff in this office are working to develop a range of programmes to support the peace process, rehabilitation and reconciliation.

We are providing #2.6 million through the United Nations, to help returning Internally Displaced Persons re-establish their livelihoods. Assistance has also been provided to the Government of Sri Lanka to help direct and co-ordinate international assistance. Further support will be considered in the light of needs assessments currently being completed.

Sanitation Target

Mr. Barnes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her Department will be doing to make sure the target of halving the number of people without access to adequate sanitation by 2015 is met. [77703]

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the target for halving the number of people without access to adequate sanitation by 2015 is met [77711]

Clare Short: We worked very hard to win international agreement to the sanitation target. Diarrhoeal disease accounts for over 2 million child deaths each year and this can be reduced by better hygiene practices, safer water supplies and provision of sanitation. Provision of access to safer water, basic sanitation and improved hygiene must be driven forward together to have the greatest impact in the health and livelihoods of the poor—more than half the world's population have no access to sanitation. My Department's bilateral expenditure on sanitation, hygiene promotion and clean water in the past three years is:

1999–2000	84.3 million
2000–2001	90.6 million
2001–2002	87.2 million

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UNRWA

Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make a statement on Britain's contribution to UNRWA. [77704]

Clare Short: The UK is UNRWA's second largest bilateral donor. Our contributions to UNRWA's General Fund, emergency appeals, and technical co-operation, have risen from #8.5 million in 1999 to planned expenditure in 2002 of about #22 million. This reflects the rising numbers of refugees, our increased confidence in UNRWA's operations, and the emergency situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what additional support she will make available to UNWRA to deal with the humanitarian situation in the West Bank and Gaza. [77706]

Clare Short: Over the last two years, in response to the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation, we have contributed a total of #20 million to UNRWA's emergency appeals. This includes an additional contribution of #2 million this year which I confirmed to Commissioner-General Hansen in October. Emergency funding is in addition to our contributions to UNRWA's regular schooling, healthcare and social services programmes.

Afghanistan

Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her policy is on humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan. [77705]

Clare Short: The latest UN assessment shows that 4.2 million people are still dependent on food aid. Very large numbers of people are also vulnerable to the effects of winter. It is important that the international community works with the Afghan authorities to ensure that basic humanitarian needs are met, whilst seeking to avoid creating a dependency culture. This means, where feasible, shifting to a more sustainable form of assistance (cash for work rather than food for work).

I have recently approved additional allocations of #11 million for the provision of humanitarian assistance during the coming winter, through the relevant UN agencies.

Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans she has to increase aid to Afghanistan [77712]

Clare Short: At the Tokyo donor conference in January this year I pledged #200 million over five years to support humanitarian and reconstruction needs in Afghanistan. In 2002–03, we originally planned to spend #40 million through UN agencies, NGOs and the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund. I have since increased this amount by #25 million, to help meet the increased humanitarian needs over the coming winter, and to help clear Afghanistan's arrears to the International Financial Institutions so that they can receive new concessional credits from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. In addition, we have earmarked #1.8 million of our annual contribution to the UN Mines Advisory Service for Afghanistan.

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Joyce Quin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make a further statement on progress towards reconstruction in Afghanistan. [77714]

Clare Short: Much has been achieved in Afghanistan over the last 10 months. There is peace and security in Kabul, a legitimate transitional Government, a new national currency, nearly 2 million refugees have returned home and 3 million children are in school.

But the situation remains fragile. Afghanistan is a desperately poor country and the south is facing its fifth year of drought and between 4 million and 6 million people are still dependent on food aid. The situation outside Kabul remains insecure, warlords control large militias and large parts of the economy are dependent on narcotics.

Further progress requires the establishment of security outside Kabul and an increase in the capacity of the Government to deliver services across the country. The UK will remain engaged to support continuing progress and development.

EuroMed Process

Mr. Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions her Department has had with other Government Departments about support for the EuroMed process [77707]

Clare Short: My Department has regular dialogue across Whitehall on issues relating to the EuroMed process. We work closely with the FCO and other Government Departments—and the European Commission, member states and EuroMed partner countries—to support the goals of the Barcelona Declaration that are relevant to my Department's work, including respect for human rights, creating an area of shared prosperity and developing human resources. This includes contributing to improved efficiency and quality of the EC's MEDA programme in working to benefit the poorest and most vulnerable people in the region.

Public Interest Organisation

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking to encourage the growth of non-profit and voluntary public interest organisations in developing countries [77708]

Clare Short: Our commitment to strengthen the voices of civil society in developing countries was set out in the 1997 white paper ''Eliminating World Poverty—Challenge for the 21st Century'' and the 2000 White Paper ''Making Globalisation work for the poor''. We are now engaging directly with a wide range of civil society organisations in developing countries, to strengthen and build their capacity to help poor and excluded people to organise and get their voices heard.

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A significant number of DflD country programmes have developed programmes to help civil society to fulfil their role. Examples of larger programmes include:

Programme	Country	Value
Poorest area civil society programme PACS	India	#27 M
Human rights & governance programme HUGO	Bangladesh	#16.5 M
Civil Society and Poverty Programme	Tanzania	#6.84 M
Strengthening capacities for transformation SCAPE	South Africa	#4.15 M
Through rights to needs for marginalised Malawians TRANSFORM	Malawi	#3.5 M

There is also an important role for UK civil society in strengthening civil society capacity within developing countries. The main channel of support to UK groups is through the Civil Society Challenge Fund which spends some #10 million a year. The aim is to support initiatives, implemented through an effective partnership with a developing country civil society organisation, which strengthens the capacity of that organisation to engage in local, national and international decision-making processes.

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