| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
22 Nov 2007 : Column 1088W—continued
Developing Countries: HIV Infection
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effect of the World Trade Organisation’s Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights agreement on developing countries who wish to manufacture generic HIV/AIDS drugs. [165904]
Mr. Thomas: There has been no formal assessment of this issue by the Government, but in 2004 the Department for International Development (DFID) funded seven independent studies that, inter alia, seek to assess the impact of the Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) on developing countries who wish to manufacture generic HIV/AIDS drugs. These are summarised in a 2004 publication by the DFID Health Systems Resource Centre: “Access to medicines in under-served markets: what are the implications of changes in intellectual property rights, trade and drug registration policy?”
These studies suggest that local production, which may be facilitated by TRIPS flexibilities, can contribute to better access and availability, but only if countries have the skills, infrastructure and regulatory capacity to produce and deliver quality medicines at lower prices than the brand-name producer.
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which developing countries have been able to use Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights for domestic production of generic HIV/AIDS drugs. [165905]
Mr. Thomas: To the best of our knowledge, the following countries have utilised, as permitted under the Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights, government use or compulsory licensing provisions for the production of generic versions of HIV/AIDS drugs: Brazil, Indonesia, Thailand and Zimbabwe.
Guatemala: Children
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) how much UK aid has been given to the Government of Guatemala for projects aimed at improving the welfare of Guatemalan street children; [163911]
(2) what representations he has made to the Government of Guatemala on the welfare of Guatemalan street children. [163910]
Mr. Thomas: The British embassy in Guatemala City has supported many local NGO projects on child rights including a sustainable programme for police officers in the city centre. This aims to improve officers’ dealings with street children, ensure the inclusion of child rights in the Police Academy training curriculum and encourage efforts to bring child abusers to justice.
DFID also provides core funding to UNICEF who run programmes throughout Central America aimed at improving children’s access to health and education. Street children have also benefited from UNICEF’s programmes in the region on HIV and AIDS and to eliminate child labour and violence against children.
India and Pakistan: Overseas Aid
Mr. MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) how much UK development aid was given to (a) India and (b) Pakistan in each year since 2000; [164408]
(2) how much aid the UK Government gave to Pakistan in each year since 2000. [165453]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: Details of the UK’s bilateral assistance and imputed multilateral assistance to India and Pakistan since 2000 are laid out in the following tables.
| Table 1: UK total bilateral gross public expenditure on development 2002-03 to 2006-07 | ||
| £000 | ||
| India | Pakistan | |
| Table 2: Imputed UK share of multilateral official development assistance (ODA) 2001-05 | ||
| £000 | ||
| India | Pakistan | |
Iraq: Economic Situation
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his estimate is of (a) economic growth, (b) employment levels and (c) average wages in Iraq; what such figures were in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [166057]
Mr. Malik: The most recent statistics that we have seen on the Iraqi economy are as follows:
| Economic growth (Percentage) | Employment levels (Percentage) | Hourly wages (Iraqi Dinar) | |
| n/a = Not available. Sources: World Bank. UNDP. World Food Programme (WFP). Central Office of Statistics and Information Technology (Government of Iraq). | |||
Iraq: Education
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the number of children in (a) primary, (b) secondary and (c) tertiary education in Iraq in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [166061]
Mr. Malik: The UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) estimate the numbers of children in education in Iraq as follows:
| Total enrolment in primary | Total enrolment in secondary | Total enrolment in tertiary, full and part- time | |
| n/a = Not available (1 )UIS estimation | |||
Iraq: Electricity Generation
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his assessment is of the availability of supply of (a) electricity and (b) water in Iraq; what assessment he has made of such availability in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [166053]
Mr. Malik: The US Iraq Reconstruction Management Office (IRMO) estimate that electricity generation since November 2006 has fluctuated between 3,500 megawatts (MW) and 4,975 MW. The average for 2006 was 4,400 MW, just above the pre-2003 level.
Although 5,000 MW have been added to the national grid since 2003, electricity generation in Iraq is not meeting demand. This is due to several reasons: old and dilapidated infrastructure; a result of years of under-investment and mismanagement; shortage of fuel supplies; and sabotage of key facilities. Furthermore, demand has increased considerably to over 9,000 MW, with the influx of electrical goods such as refrigerators, televisions and air conditioning units.
The most recent reliable data available for water supplies in Iraq comes from the Iraq living conditions survey carried out in 2004 by the Iraqi Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation and the United Nations Development programme. This survey can be found at:
The 2004 UN survey found that in urban areas, 99 per cent. of households have access to safe drinking water (but for 33 per cent. the supply is unreliable). In rural areas, 65 per cent. of households-have access to safe drinking water (but for 22 per cent. the supply is unreliable). Since 2003, donors (including DFID) have worked hard to restore supplies. As a result, IRMO estimates that an additional 5.4 million Iraqis have improved access to drinking water.
Iraq: Food
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his assessment is of (a) food prices and (b) levels of food poverty in Iraq; what assessment he has made of such (i) prices and (ii) levels in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [166055]
Mr. Malik:
The most reliable data we have is a survey conducted in 2005 by the World Food programme (WFP) and Government of Iraq. The survey found that four million people in Iraq are considered food
insecure and in need of food assistance—this equals 15 per cent. of the population. The survey found that a further 8.3 million people would be rendered food insecure if they were not provided food rations through the public distribution system (PDS).
The only information we have on food prices are the Government of Iraq’s food inflation figures (i.e. the rate at which food prices are increasing).
| End of year | Food inflation (Percentage) |
| (1)September 2007 inflation rate (the latest available). Source: Central Office of Statistics and Information Technology (Government of Iraq) | |
Iraq: Life Expectancy
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of levels of (a) infant mortality, (b) maternal mortality and (c) life expectancy in Iraq; what such levels were in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [166059]
Mr. Malik: According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Iraq remains on the list of the 60 countries in the world with the highest infant, under-five and maternal mortality rates. The latest joint UNICEF—Government of Iraq Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey was published in March 2006. It estimated an infant mortality rate at 35 per 1,000 live births. The under-five mortality rate was estimated at 41 per 1,000 live births. According to a 2004 Iraq Living Conditions Survey (ILCS), the maternal mortality rate was 192 per 100,000 live births. There are no fully reliable or up-to-date figures on life expectancy in Iraq.
The Government of Iraq has primary responsibility for ensuring the welfare of its own citizens, including children. However, the UN, led by UNICEF, continues to support the Iraqi Government to improve nutrition rates in Iraq through infant feeding campaigns, the provision of medical supplies and other support. DFID is supporting humanitarian agencies providing emergency relief, including food assistance, to children and other vulnerable groups. Since 2003, DFID has committed over £130 million in humanitarian assistance, of which £15 million has been for this year alone.
Sustainable Cocoa Chain Programme
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) if he will make it his policy to facilitate a sustainable cocoa chain programme to eradicate child trafficking in the global cocoa industry; [165927]
(2) if he will make it his policy to provide financial support to the sustainable cocoa chain programme announced by Cargill and others on 10 October 2007. [165973]
Mr. Thomas:
The UK is committed to the development of fair and ethical supply chains in all sectors. We are supporting initiatives to increase the
transparency of the supply chain and reduce the risk of child labour and trafficking. This includes promotion of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, which outline that the Government expect UK companies to contribute to the effective abolition of child labour. We also support responsible business through the work of the Ethical Trading Initiative and the Fairtrade Foundation.
The Department for International Development (DFID) does not and has not been asked to provide financial support to the new programme announced by Cargill last month. We welcome initiatives from the private sector to support sustainable supply chains in cocoa and other sectors. We encourage co-ordination and co-operation between all those working on this issue.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |