---

6 Oct 2003 : Column 1004W—continued

Cameroon

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2003, Official Report, column 9W, on poverty reduction strategies, what pressure his Department applied for the inclusion of water, sanitation and hygiene in the Cameroon Poverty Reduction Strategy Plan published on 12 August; and whether the Poverty Reduction Strategy Plan provides sufficient resources to meet (a) the water and (b) the sanitation millennium development targets in Cameroon. [130749]

Hilary Benn: Cameroon's Poverty Reduction Strategy includes objectives of improved access to drinking water and sanitation under one of the seven Strategic Areas. DFID participated in discussions of the draft strategy with the Government of Cameroon and other donors. Our focus was on improved governance, monitoring of PRS implementation, and forestry sector reform, which is the sector we are concentrating on and where we feel we can make most difference. We would expect adequacy of the Strategy with respect to all the Millennium Development Goals to become clearer through the monitoring process, which the government of Cameroon and donors are working to put in place.

6 Oct 2003 : Column 1005W

Congo

Ms Oona King: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what actions his Department is taking to support the transitional national government in the Democratic Republic of Congo. [130689]

Hilary Benn: Since the installation of the Transitional National Government in the Democratic Republic of Congo in July DFID has started to engage actively with it, and with other donors, aimed at establishing a significant programme of support to the DRC. This involves some initial Quick Impact Projects in the fields of health and education to an estimated value of £19 million. In addition, a DFID mission visited Kinshasa in early September to identify activities in support of the five Transitional Institutions of the TNG. We are also looking at working with partners, especially the Government of Belgium, in Security Sector Reform. The UK is also a major contributor to the World Bank's regional Great Lakes programme for DDR which will include programmes in the DRC.

Consultancy Contracts

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development how many consultancies were commissioned by the Department in the last two years for which figures are available; and what the cost of those contracts was. [130889]

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID central Procurement Department commissioned consultancy contracts as follows:

	Number of contracts	£ million
2001–02	1.082	282
2002–03	833	262

In addition, DFID overseas departments commissioned lower value contracts worth a total of £20 million in 2001–02 and £25 million in 2002–03.

Departmental Budget

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what percentage of the Department's 2002–03 budget is spent on providing help to those without adequate access to water, food and shelter. [129248]

Mr. Gareth Thomas: The central focus of the Government's policy on international development is a commitment to the internationally agreed target to halve the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by 2015, together with associated targets including basic health care provision and universal access to primary education. We believe that reducing poverty is the best way of empowering people to take control of their own lives and gain access to basic requirements such as food, shelter and water.

The Monterrey Consensus, agreed at the UN Financing for Development conference in Monterrey in 2002, recognised the crucial role played by developing countries' own poverty reduction strategies. Experience has shown that the reform agendas drawn up locally are more successful than those imposed from outside. More

6 Oct 2003 : Column 1006W

effective use of aid means moving away from donors allocating funding to selected sectors and donor-led projects to providing support that is consistent with poverty reduction strategies drawn up by the developing countries themselves. It is for this reason that we do not plan our resources on the basis of different sectors. Rather, we allocate funds to regions and countries and allow country programmes to determine priorities according to national plans.

It is not therefore possible to provide an exact figure for the percentage of the Department's overall budget spent on particular sectors. Over half of the Department's overall budget is allocated to expenditure through multilateral organisations and other categories, such as direct budget support and humanitarian aid, where it is difficult to attribute precisely spending according to sectors.

We are committed to the Millennium Development Goal targets on water and sanitation as well as to the adoption of national policies and strategies for integrated water resources management in all developing countries by 2005. Improvements to water management are central to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. DFID expenditure on water and sanitation in 2001–002 was £33.8 million. We do not yet have final figures for 2002–03.

The United Nations agency responsible for shelter is UN-Habitat. The UK contribution is around £1 million a year (which in 2002–03 amounted to 27 per cent. of their core funding). We do not have figures on bilateral spending on shelter.

The causes of hunger are many and include poverty, ill health, exclusion, conflict and natural disasters. Poverty is, however, the principal cause. The concept of 'food security' focuses on people's ability to obtain food, rather than simply on food production, which is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for tackling hunger. Policies to tackle food insecurity need to be based on a clear understanding of who is hungry and why. The design of such policies needs to take into account people's vulnerability, the impact of shocks and the effects of trade policies.

DFID spent an average of around £275 million a year in the period 1998–99–2000–01 on Sustainable Livelihoods (including Agriculture and Food Security). Final figures are not yet available for 2002–03. This does not include short-term emergency food aid.

DFID's total bilateral spend in 2001–02 was £1,506 million, of which £964 million can be allocated by sector (this does not include budget support or humanitarian assistance).

It should be noted that all these figures are likely to understate the amounts actually spent in these sectors for the reasons given above and because, in the past, DFID only attributed expenditure to one sector even when an activity contributed to more than one sector.

Ethiopia

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what the Department's policy is on the Ethiopian Government's

6 Oct 2003 : Column 1007W

programme of national resettlement in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Region; and if he will make a statement. [130304]

Mr. Gareth Thomas: The Government of Ethiopia are undertaking a programme of voluntary resettlement. We recognise that if properly managed, such programmes can have a role to play as part of a wider set of actions to address food insecurity. However, badly managed resettlement can have a negative impact if people are moved into inappropriate areas or given insufficient support or services.

There clearly have been some cases of inappropriate resettlement in Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Region. Our overall policy has been to engage with the federal and regional Government to promote a more careful and measured approach. In addition, we have remained ready to respond to humanitarian situations that might develop. Our Ethiopia office will continue to monitor the situation carefully.

Export Control Act

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development pursuant to his answer of 18 June 2003, Official Report, column 241W, on the Export Control Act 2002, whether the Department discussed the impact of the orders on developing countries with (a) aid agencies and (b) NGOs working in developing countries. [129820]

Mr. Gareth Thomas : No. DFID officials did discuss the submissions made by aid agencies and NGOs working in developing countries to HMG's consultation on the draft secondary legislation of the Export Control Act with relevant DTI officials.

Food Expenditure

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development how much was spent on food by his Department and by each of the agencies for which it is responsible in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03; what proportion of that food by value was produced in the United Kingdom; what guidance he has issued to encourage the procurement of home-produced food; and if he will make a statement. [129373]

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID's headquarters catering services purchased food costing £121,000 in 20012–02 (only part-year figures are available, dating from the start of the current contract) and £224,000 in 2002–03. The caterers estimate that around 60 per cent. was produced in the UK. We have agreed an action plan with them to implement the Government's policy for sustainable food procurement.

---