| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
6 Oct 2008 : Column 113W—continued
EU Law
Mr. Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many officials in his Department are wholly or mainly tasked with the negotiation, implementation or administration of EU legislation and consequent policies. [222267]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) has a core Department of 20 staff working exclusively on European Union (EU) aid policy and implementation. This includes two posts in the United Kingdom Permanent Representative to the EU (in Brussels). In addition, a variety of other departments in DFID deal with specific issues to which EU policy is relevant, including: trade, migration, aid effectiveness, climate change and preparation of the EU-Africa strategy. None of these other departments, however, are exclusively EU focused.
Global Cluster Appeal
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the extent to which the independent evaluation conducted by the emergency relief co-ordinator concluded that the cluster approach designating a particular organisation to lead the humanitarian response in a given sector of aid improved the efficiency of the humanitarian effort. [224133]
Mr. Thomas: An independent evaluation of the cluster approach was carried out in 2007. The review found that
“Most evident were improvements made in filling gaps and extending capacity. Predictability of leadership was also considerably enhanced by lead agencies accepting responsibility for the totality of their sectors.”
The Department for International Development (DFID) continues to work with the Emergency Relief Coordinator, Sir John Holmes, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and lead agencies at both policy and operational levels to ensure cluster leadership responsibilities are a core function of their organisation.
Government Communications
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff in (a) his Department and (b) its agencies (i) are classified as Government communicators and (ii) have access to the Government Communication Network. [215109]
Gillian Merron: Communication is integral to the Department for International Development's (DFID) mission. We do not keep central records of all staff working on communications across the Department and this information could not be gathered without incurring disproportionate costs. DFID does not have any agencies.
All staff who work in a communication role can access the Government Communication Network (GCN) and the resources that it provides.
Horn of Africa: Food Aid
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate his Department has made of the number of people likely to be dependent on emergency food aid in the Horn of Africa in the period from 2008-09. [216295]
Gillian Merron: Analysis made by the United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Assistance (UNOCHA), drawing on a range of assessments made by UN agencies and NGOs, suggests that at least 17 million people are currently in urgent need of food and other humanitarian assistance. This is a result of conflict, forced displacement, starvation and disease, poor agro-climatic conditions and high food and fuel prices. This analysis is supported by Department for International Development (DFID) humanitarian experts who have visited some of the worst affected areas in the Horn in the past two months.
Prospects for 2009 depend on the harvests and condition of pasture lands, and these in turn depend on the rains. In south east Ethiopia and Somalia the level of insecurity is an important determinant of the level of humanitarian needs.
Humanitarian Aid
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much core funding has been provided by his Department to humanitarian agencies for 2008-09. [224135]
Mr. Thomas:
With increasing humanitarian needs and the requirement for a stronger global system, the Department for International Development (DFID)
works with multilateral agencies to enhance their effectiveness in providing humanitarian support and response. Core funding arrangements, which are linked to additional performance, are currently in place with the: International Organisation for Migration (IOM), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), Office for the Co-ordinator for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), World Food Programme (WFP), UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC). Total funding for these agencies for 2008-09 is £39 million.
Indian Ocean Tsunami
John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funds his Department has disbursed to Sri Lanka for reconstruction assistance since the tsunami; what recent changes have been made to the disbursement; and if he will make a statement. [220718]
Mr. Malik: During the period 2006-07, as part of our post-tsunami reconstruction, the Department for International Development (DFID) provided £2 million bilateral funds, supporting work on local economic governance and improving the management of recovery and reconstruction.
£1.5 million was allocated for the North East Provincial Council to empower communities and improve service delivery in the North East by strengthening local government capacity.
£0.5 million was allocated to the Asia Foundation to improve the overall business environment, contributing to improved welfare and political stability in multi-ethnic and tsunami-affected areas of the country.
DFID's bilateral development programme in Sri Lanka has now closed and our funding (£1.5 million per year) is now focussed through the Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCCP) working with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to support peace building activities in Sri Lanka.
Iraq: Reconstruction
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 18 June 2008, Official Report, column 1040W, on Iraq: reconstruction, what the 10 largest infrastructure projects in Southern Iraq supported by his Department are; and to what extent his Department has engaged local residents to assist in the provision of security for such projects. [223859]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The information requested is as follows:
To ensure the security of infrastructure projects, DFID has engaged the government of Iraq or local communities as appropriate. The majority of projects have been situated within existing government of Iraq facilities and DFID has therefore agreed security arrangements with the relevant government ministry. In other cases, because of the benefit projects will bring to the local community, tribal leaders have agreed to ensure the security of sites.
Lebanon: Land Mines
Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what work has been undertaken on UK funded operations to clear land mines in south Lebanon; and what plans there are for further such work. [223735]
Mr. Thomas: In immediate response to the conflict in the Lebanon in 2006 the UK Government provided funds of over £3 million to clear mines, cluster munitions and other remnants of conflict in south Lebanon by the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) and Mines Action Group (MAG). Our commitment continues, with around £1 million committed to fund the work of UNMAS and MAG in south Lebanon over the next two years.
Maldives: Overseas Aid
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid his Department provided to the Maldives in (a) 2005-06, (b) 2006-07 and (c) 2007-08; how much it plans to provide in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement. [216345]
Mr. Malik: In 2005-06 Department for International Development (DFID) bilateral overseas development assistance (ODA) to the Maldives was £1 million. In 2005-06 the UK also provided £5.5 million to the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Tsunami Recovery Programme. This included £5 million through the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The funds have supported four of UNDP’s five tsunami projects; shelter, livelihoods, disaster risk management and aid co-ordination.
Since 2005-06 DFID has not provided any bilateral overseas development assistance to the Maldives. However, DFID continues to provide support to the Maldives through its contribution to the European Community (EC). The amount of EC Aid provided by DFID to the Maldives in 2005 was £131,529, £915,020 in 2006, and £620,902 in 2007. There are no data available yet for 2008.
Overseas Aid
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what programmes his Department is providing with the UN Development Programme to create stable states; how much has been allocated to these programmes in 2008-09; what the administrative costs associated with these programmes will be in 2008-09; and what mechanisms his Department has to evaluate the effectiveness of its bilateral aid aimed at facilitating stability in fragile states. [220387]
Mr. Malik: The Department for International Development (DFID) supports UNDP with core funding (£190 million in 2004-07), as well as supporting specific initiatives, such as the UNDP’s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR), and our country programme work. For example, this year DFID gave £200,000 to a UNDP trust fund that supported Kofi Annan’s role in helping resolve the post-election crisis in Kenya. It is not yet possible to provide figures for financial year 2008-09 or an administration cost breakdown. UNDP’s administration costs vary according to the programme and context, but the amount in many agreements is between 7 and 11 per cent.
DFID has procedures for routinely assessing aid programmes and has adapted the normal framework for its Country Programme Evaluations to take account of the specific requirements for aid effectiveness in fragile states, following the OECD-DAC Principles for Good International Engagement in fragile states.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what programmes were funded by the £13.5 million contributed by his Department to the Civil Society Challenge Fund; and what the administrative costs associated with each programme were. [220449]
Mr. Malik: A table listing the 163 programmes supported by £13.5 million from the Civil Society Challenge Fund (CSCF) during 2006-07 will be placed in the Library.
The Department for International Development (DFID) does not track administrative costs for each individual CSCF programme. During 2006-07, DFID's administrative cost for consultancy support to the CSCF as a whole was £227,518.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much has been allocated by his Department to joint funding schemes with the research councils in 2008-09; and how much his Department will spend on administration of such schemes in 2008-09. [220525]
Mr. Malik:
The Department for International Development (DFID) has joint funding schemes with
four Research Councils. We estimate that spend on these programmes this financial year will be as shown in the following table.
| Programme | £ million |
|
Joint Natural Environment Research Council/Economic and Social Research Council Eco Systems Programme | |
The DFID cost of administering these schemes is estimated at 2 to 3 per cent.
Pakistan: Overseas Aid
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2008, Official Report, column 1183W, on Pakistan: overseas aid, how much his Department is planning to spend on national health programmes in Pakistan during 2008-09; and how this funding will be distributed. [223679]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The Department for International Development (DFID) is planning to spend approximately £35.6 million on national health programmes in Pakistan between April 2008 and March 2009. This will be distributed in a variety of ways, including:
(i) £15 million to the Ministry of Health for implementation of the national health facility (NHF). This supports seven priority national health programmes:
HIV/AIDs, TB and Malaria control, Nutrition, Immunization, access to basic health care and family planning from female health workers, and a Population and Welfare programme.
(ii) £10.7 million to the Ministry of Health's Maternal and New Born Health (MNH) programme.
(iii) Approximately £1.6 million for research, advocacy, monitoring and capacity building support in managing the NHF and MNH programmes.
(iv) £3.3 million support to National and Provincial HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programmes (provided through a World Bank Trust Fund)
(v) £5 million to the World Health Organisation and UNICEF to support the national polio eradication programme.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the Answer of 18 June 2008, Official Report, columns 1044-45W, on South Asia: tuberculosis, what the seven national health programmes his Department supports in Pakistan are; and on what initiatives his Department's contribution of £15 million to support the national programme between 2005 and 2008 has been spent. [223853]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The Department for International Development (DFID) is supporting priority national health and population welfare programmes in Pakistan through the National Health Facility. These are: Lady Health Workers, Population Welfare, Immunisation, Nutrition, TB, Malaria and HIV/AIDS.
DFID’s financial contribution between financial years 2005-06 and 2007-08 totalled £52.5 million. This funding was disbursed to all seven programmes. It has helped achieve the following health outcomes in Pakistan for the period 2002-07:
The TB Programme has reached a target of 87 per cent. of cases successfully treated, three years ahead of schedule; case detection rates have also increased sharply, to 69 per cent. in 2007 and are also likely to reach the 2010 target (70 per cent.) ahead of schedule. (Source: National TB Control Programme Management Information System, 2007)
23 per cent. increase in children fully immunised by the Expanded Programme of Immunization. (sources: Pakistan Survey Living Standards Measurement 2006-07; Pakistan Integrated Household Survey 2001-02).
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |