Tuberculosis
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration he has given to implementing the consolidated action plan to prevent and combat multi-drug-resistant and extremely drug-resistant tuberculosis in the World Health Organisation European Region; and what representations his Department has made to the European Commission to ensure sufficient financial resources are available to facilitate the Action Plan's implementation. [78843]
Anne Milton: The United Kingdom contributed to the development of the action plan to prevent and combat multi-drug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB) in the World Health Organisation European Region, including the formulation of a monitoring framework.
The Health Protection Agency, through its National Mycobacterium Reference Laboratory, is leading the European network of national reference laboratories assuring the quality of diagnosis for drug-resistant TB and supporting national expertise for the public health and clinical management of MDR and XDR TB. It is also with partners within the European Union developing a clinical/diagnostic trial network.
There are already measures in place in this country to tackle MDR and XDR TB, which are relatively uncommon. These measures are in line with the action plan.
We have not made any representations to the European Commission about resourcing of implementation of the action plan's recommendations.
International Development
Accountancy: EU Law
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what bilateral meetings his Department had with development agencies of other EU member states in relation to proposed changes to the European accountancy directives and transparency directive. [78814]
Mr Duncan: The Department for International Development, Treasury and Department for Business, Innovation and Skills are considering the European Commission's detailed proposals for changes to the transparency directive and accounting directive to introduce mandatory reporting requirements for companies in the extractive industries and will be discussing them with relevant partners and other stakeholders in due course.
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The Government have made it clear that the UK supports EU requirements for extractives companies to ensure that they disclose the payments they make to Governments, matching the standards recently set by the Dodd Frank Act in the US.
Afghanistan: Females
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether his Department provides financial support to any women's organisations in Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement. [78548]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK Government place women at the heart of our development agenda. The Department for International Development (DFID) takes careful account of the impact on women and girls in the design and implementation of all its projects and programmes
DFID's global Civil Society Challenge Fund is supporting Womankind and the International Planned Parenthood Foundation to address the human rights and practical needs of women and girls in Afghanistan and elsewhere. DFID is also supporting Zardozi', a local Afghan partner, which helps women tailors and cloth merchants sell their products to markets, working through female agents. This programme has worked with more than 2,000 Afghan women to date and its reach is to be extended.
During my recent visit to Afghanistan I launched a major new civil society programme that will provide grants to Afghan organisations to help them hold their government to account. The programme will have a strong focus on women's rights and it is hoped that many women's organisations will directly benefit from this programme.
Burma: Children
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding his Department provides for humanitarian and psychological support for former child soldiers from Burma. [78825]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK provides significant core funding to UNICEF who deliver programmes of rehabilitation, reintegration, family-tracing and other support to former child soldiers in Burma. Further details of DFID's work in Burma can be found in the DFID Burma Operational Plan, available on the DFID website at:
www.dfid.gov.uk
Burma: Overseas Aid
Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how his Department evaluates the ability of recipient organisations in Burma to meet project objectives and to account properly for aid funds. [78322]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: In Burma as in all other countries, DFID officials rigorously review the evidence provided by organisations when they bid for funds. Proposals are assessed against criteria such as:
the credibility of the link between the planned activities and the results to be achieved;
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the strength of results monitoring plans;
experience the organisation has of delivering similar projects successfully; and
the cost-effectiveness of the proposed work.
During implementation DFID projects are routinely scrutinised to assess whether objectives are on track. They are also evaluated after implementation to assess whether objectives have been met, and to ensure lesson learning. All DFID projects need to be accessible to credible audit teams to certify that aid funds are being properly accounted for.
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development for what reason his Department did not approve a grant application from the Kachin Women's Association, Thailand, for funding for support for people internally displaced by conflict in Kachin state, Burma. [78826]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: Department for International Development officials reviewed the grant application from the Kachin Women's Association—Thailand (KWAT) alongside other organisations offering programmes to support people internally displaced by conflict in Kachin state, Burma. After careful consideration officials decided that significant work would have been needed to strengthen the design of KWAT's proposal for us to be able to fund it. Officials therefore decided the most effective way to reach the largest number of IDPs quickly would be to increase our existing support to those organisations that had ongoing programmes which could be scaled-up, rather than designing and approving new programmes as would have been necessary in order to support KWAT.
CDC
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when CDC plans to start publishing information on the projects it supports. [78827]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: CDC is already publishing full lists of the fund managers it works with, the funds it invests in and the businesses in which its capital is at work.
CDC also publishes each year its annual report and accounts and a separate annual review which examines the development impact of CDC's work.
All of these documents are available to the public on CDC's website:
www.cdcgroup.com
CDC: Disclosure of Information
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the contribution of the publication of forward strategies to the transparency of CDC. [78828]
Mr Andrew Mitchell:
CDC has taken on board the criticisms made about its lack of transparency. Its new Disclosure Policy puts CDC among the leaders in the Development Finance Institution sector for publication of and accessibility to substantially more amounts of information about where the money goes, who actually manages it and what results are achieved. A notable
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example of this new approach is the publication of CDC's high-level Business Plan at the end of May this year.
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps have been taken to improve the transparency of CDC. [78829]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: CDC has reviewed its transparency and disclosure policy and now publishes significantly more operational and corporate information than in the past.
The new disclosure policy, information about the fund managers CDC works with, the funds CDC invests in and the businesses receiving CDC investment, together with country and sector information is available on CDC's website:
www.cdcgroup.com
along with corporate information about CDC.
Freedom of Information Requests
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 his Department has received in each month since May 2010; how many responses given in each such month disclosed (a) the full information requested, (b) part of the information requested, with some information withheld under exemptions in the Act and (c) none of the information requested; and in respect of how many requests received in each such month (i) (A) substantive and (B) holding responses were issued within 20 working days of the date of receipt, (ii) no substantive response was issued within 40 working days of the date of receipt and (iii) no substantive response has yet been issued. [78885]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The number of requests under the Freedom of Information Act received by DFID on a monthly basis from May 2010 to June 2011 can be found in the following table (statistics for the third quarter of 2011 are not yet available). Information on the individual outcomes of these requests on a monthly basis could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost. Full statistics reporting the information sought on a quarterly and annual basis are reported by DFID to the Ministry of Justice and are published by that Department. There is no provision under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for holding responses.
|
|
Number of requests received |
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Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development in respect of how many responses to requests for information received by his Department under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 the reason of (a) commercially sensitive information, (b) information not held, (c) information too costly to provide and (d) vexatious or repeated requests has been given in response since January 2010. [78886]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The information sought is published by the Ministry of Justice on an annual basis. The total figures published in respect of requests made to DFID from January 2010 until June 2011 are as follows (figures are not yet available for the third quarter of 2011):
(a) Commercially sensitive—34
(b) Information not held—35
(c) Cost limit—93
(d) Vexatious requests—9
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which Minister in his Department is responsible for determining whether exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 should apply to responses to requests for information under the Act; and which other Minister is responsible for making such determinations should the subject matter of the request fall within the ministerial responsibilities of the Minister with lead responsibility. [78887]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: Departmental officials determine whether exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 should apply to responses to requests for information under the Act.
The exemption under section 36 (prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs) can only apply if it is the reasonable opinion of a qualified person that the exemption applies. In relation to information held by Government, the qualified person must be a Minister. In DFID I am the qualified person.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether he receives any external funding for (a) his ministerial office and (b) his advisers; and what the (i) source and (ii) amount is of any such funding. [78015]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: No, I do not receive any external funding for my ministerial office or my advisers.
Public Sector Employee Bids
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many applications from employees to run services for which his Department is directly responsible he has received since May 2010; and if he will make a statement. [77603]
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Mr Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) has not received any applications from DFID employees to run services that this Department is responsible for.
Ministerial Meetings
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 1 November 2011, Official Report, column 580W, on departmental meetings, when the list will be updated to cover the period since March 2010. [79009]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: Details of all Ministers external meetings are available on the DFID website:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-DFID/Our-organisation1/Ministers/
and have been published up to and including March 2011. Details of external meetings from April 2011 will be published shortly. All Departments publish the returns at the same time.
Security Vetting
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what level of security vetting is required for (a) special advisers and (b) ministerial-appointed policy advisers in his Department; and if he will list each person who has held these posts since May 2010. [77892]
Mr Duncan: The booklet HMG Personnel Security Controls describes the circumstances in which a post may require the holder to be the subject of national security vetting checks. It is available from the Cabinet Office website at:
www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk
as is the quarterly publication of the list of special advisers which is also available in the Library of the House.
There are no other ministerial-appointed policy advisers in the Department for International Development (DFID).
Developing Countries: Waste Disposal
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what agreements are in place between the UK and other governments to co-operate to end the export of electronic waste to developing countries. [76121]
Mr Duncan: Under the waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) directive, the UK is working with EU member states to prevent the illegal export of electronic waste to developing countries. Under the WEEE directive, it is illegal to export hazardous e-waste from the UK for disposal in developing countries. The UK has a national intelligence team and a national environmental crime team. As part of their remit, these teams are required to prevent the illegal export of e-waste. They use an intelligence-led approach to target the most prolific, serious and organised illegal waste exporters. This has led to a 98% success rate of finding electrical waste when stopping targeted shipping containers.
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East Africa: Droughts
Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the funding required to alleviate the famine in the Horn of Africa. [78501]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The current declaration of famine by the United Nations is limited to specific areas of Southern Somalia. The 2011 United Nations (UN) Consolidated Appeal for Somalia outlines humanitarian funding requirements of US$983 million and is nearly 80% funded. Other organisations who issue their own appeals (notably the Red Cross movement) have raised most of what they have asked for. Instability and lack of humanitarian access are now more significant constraints to humanitarian delivery in Somalia than a lack of funding.
Other countries in the Horn of Africa which are affected by drought, but not famine, include Kenya, with a UN humanitarian appeal (including for refugee support) of $741 million (68% funded); Ethiopia, with a UN appeal for the drought of $398 million (73% funded) and for refugees of $246 million (51% funded); and Djibouti with a UN appeal of $33 million (53% funded).
Regularly updated information on the funding situation for the Horn of Africa (and other emergencies) can be seen on the UN’s Financial Tracking Service website:
http://fts.unocha.org/
East Africa: Education
Mr Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to help improve educational opportunities in East Africa. [78478]
Mr Duncan: Our support for education in east Africa is designed to improve access with a particular focus on improving opportunities for girls to complete primary school and go on to secondary education.
In Kenya, we plan to increase support for state schools in the arid north eastern parts of the country where enrolment is low, and to support the development of low cost private schools in more densely populated urban communities. We shall be increasing opportunities for girls to complete primary and go on to secondary school in a number of different ways, such as improving the school environment and providing better incentives for girls to stay on in school through scholarships and cash transfers for their families. By 2014-15 we shall be supporting at least 300,000 students at primary level (of whom 160,000 will be girls) and at least 600 secondary school students, two thirds of whom will be girls.
In Tanzania, we shall have a similar emphasis on increasing girls’ enrolment at primary level and transition to secondary education through enhancing the quality of education, improving water and sanitation in schools and ensuring better literacy and numeracy. We shall be supporting a pilot programme to improve girls’ safety and tackle gender-based violence in school. By 2014-15 we plan to support at least 300,000 students at primary level and 85,000 students at secondary level (of whom 50% will be girls).
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In Uganda, we shall be increasing opportunities in northern Uganda for 13,000 children with disabilities and through vocational training for 160,000 young people. Two programmes through the Girls’ Education Movement aim to enable girls who drop out of primary school to resume their studies and provide 1,000 bursaries for girls to attend secondary school.
Famine: International Co-operation
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on the adoption by the UN of the Charter to End Extreme Hunger. [78248]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: I am fully supportive of the Charter to End Extreme Hunger’s aim to reduce the likelihood of crises such as that currently taking hold in the horn of Africa taking place in the future. In at-risk areas such as this, the Government have committed in their Humanitarian Policy to support strengthened warning systems and contingency plans and to build resilience to disasters. Already, in Ethiopia we are helping 7.8 million people to break their need for emergency food programmes by providing support before food insecurity reaches famine levels.
I have recently written to the non-governmental organisations behind the charter to assure them of my support for their aims and express appreciation for their vital work. I know that Valerie Amos, the UN’s emergency relief co-ordinator, has been similarly positive about the charter.
Horn of Africa: Famine
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he has taken to encourage other (a) nations and (b) international organisations to assist in meeting any funding shortfall in famine relief for East Africa. [78816]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK has been at the forefront of the world's response to the crisis in the Horn of Africa. While UK lobbying has helped to attract significant financial support to humanitarian appeals, there remains a shortfall of approximately US$609 million.
Over the summer I have spoken with a number of my international counterparts about the crisis in the Horn; a central message I have pushed is the need for generous and sustained support to relief and recovery efforts. Specifically I have held discussions with the United Nation's Emergency Relief Coordinator, Baroness Amos, and with Josette Sheeran of the World Food Programme. In addition I have also spoken with Dr Rajiv Shah from the United States Agency for International Development; Ben Knapen, the Netherlands' Development Minster; Dirk Niebel, Germany's Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development; Gunilla Carlsson, Minister for International Development Cooperation of Sweden; Henri de Raincourt, France's Development Minister; and Franco Frattini, Italy's Foreign Minister.
During July I pressed development ministers and officials including Denmark's State Secretary for development policy, Ib Petersen; European Commissioner for Development, Andris Piebalgs; Deputy Director General and Minister of Foreign Affairs for France, George Serre; Minister of the Environment and International Development of Norway, Erik Solheim;
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Japanese President, Sadako Ogata; President of Institute for Liberty and Democracy, Hernando de Soto; Deputy Administrator of USAID, Donald Steinberg; Secretary General of UNCTAD, Supachai Panitchpakdi; Chair of Development Assistance Committee France, Brian Atwood; Director-General of Ausaid Australia, Peter Baxter; President of CIDA Canada, Margaret Briggs; Director General of International Cooperation, the Netherlands, Yoka Brandt; Vice Minister for Development Policy and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Korea, Tae-Yul Cho; Director General Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Switzerland, Martin Dahinden; Associate Administrator UNDP, Rebeca Grynspan; Secretary General OECD, Angel Gurria; State Secretary for International Development Cooperation Sweden, Anna Helquist; Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Norway, Hege Hertzberg; Parliamentary State Secretary, Federal Ministry for Eco-Cooperation Development Germany, Gudrun Kopp; Executive Director UNICEF, Anthony Lake; Managing Director of Public Policy, Bill Gates Foundation, Geoff Lamb; Managing Director of World Bank, Mahmoud Mohieldin; Kenyan Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, and Foreign Minister, George Saitoti; Somali Government; senior officials from the United Nations (UN) including Baroness Amos of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs; Josette Sheeran of the World Food Programme; Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees; and Tony Lake of the UN Children's Fund.
The Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the right hon. Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), and the Under-Secretary of State for International Development, the hon. Member for Eddisbury (Mr O'Brien), have also discussed the crisis affecting the Horn of Africa with a number of their counterparts.
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on helping to meet any funding shortfalls experienced by non-governmental organisations operating in East Africa. [78817]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is currently the second largest bilateral humanitarian donor to the Horn of Africa drought crisis, behind the United States, having committed £128.44 million since 1 July. Much of this funding has been provided to NGOs such as Save the Children UK, Oxfam GB, Concern, Care International UK and Action Against Hunger UK.
The UK is committed to encouraging other countries to support relief operations and lobbying others remains a key component of the UK's response. On this issue, over the summer, I have spoken many times to development ministers from other countries such as the United Sates of America, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Canada, Australia and Japan; as have the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the right hon. Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague). The UK will maintain the pressure on other donors to support life-saving humanitarian activities and resilience building activities carried out by NGOs and others in the Horn of Africa.
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International Assistance
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of progress towards achieving the millennium development goals (a) to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger by 2015, (b) to achieve universal primary education by 2015, (c) to promote gender equality and empower women and (d) to reduce child mortality. [79006]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: DFID's Annual Report includes information on global progress towards the millennium development goals, as well as progress in DFID's priority countries. Information on global progress can be found within chapter 2, with progress in DFID's priority countries included within chapter 3.
A link to DFID's Annual Report for 2010-11 is included as follows:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Annual-report/
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the UK's contribution to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. [79007]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: DFID’s Annual Report includes information on global progress towards the Millennium Development Goals, as well as progress in DFID’s priority countries. Information on global progress can be found within Chapter 2, with progress in DFID’s priority countries included within chapter 3.
A link to DFID’s Annual Report for 2010-11 is included as follows:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Annual-report/
Overseas Aid
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has received on steps to increase public awareness and understanding of UK aid spending. [78808]
Mr Duncan: Between January and June 2011 the Department for International Development conducted a comprehensive external review into the use of aid funds in the UK to promote awareness of global poverty. This review, completed by the Central Office for Information, consulted a wide array of stakeholders. The report, with a list of the stakeholders consulted, is available at:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/development-awareness-review
Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the joint statement made by UK development non-governmental organisations in advance of the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness entitled Aid effectiveness in contexts of poor governance, conflict and fragility. [79286]
Mr Andrew Mitchell:
The UK broadly agrees with the priorities in the joint statement made by UK development non-governmental organisations in advance of the Fourth
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High Level Forum (HLF4). The Government’s priorities for HLF4 are improving aid effectiveness in fragile and conflict affected states improving results and the transparency of development assistance.
The UK plans to support, with others, a new deal for fragile and conflict affected states at HLF4. The New Deal, which has been led by fragile states themselves, working in partnership with donors, and a large group of civil society organisations including many UK NGOs, comprises a set of new goals and commitments to deliver legitimate, inclusive politics and build better security, justice and economic foundations.
Overseas Aid: Developing Countries
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) funding and (b) programmes for climate change adaptation and mitigation prioritise the needs of (i) children and (ii) other vulnerable people in developing countries. [78820]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK Government have launched the International Climate Fund (ICF) to help reduce poverty and tackle climate change in developing countries. Our adaptation funding will be focused on the poorest countries in the sectors that are most important to poor people's livelihoods and vulnerable to climate change. For example, the ICF will reduce the vulnerability of poor people to climate-related shocks by funding better early warning systems, building cyclone shelters, and setting up insurance schemes to protect farmers and families from losses.
The UK Government are also developing programmes to support clean energy solutions for poor people who are not currently connected to the national electricity grid, reducing their vulnerability to external fuel prices and the need to collect traditional sources of fuel. This provides more time for economic activities and has a significant impact on maternal and child health. We are continually analysing and tracking the impact and application of climate financing to ensure that the voices of poor and vulnerable people, and their representatives are heard, and taken into account, in the selection and design of programmes.
Global Population
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the likelihood of the Government meeting its commitment to achieving the (a) trends in global population and (b) Millennium Development Goals by 2015. [78819]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Government have made no commitment to meeting the global trends in population. We are however committed to giving women control over their lives and their bodies. We know that when women are given the choice they choose to have smaller families; they choose to have more for their children not more children.
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The UK will enable at least 10 million more women to use modern methods of family planning by 2015, so that women can decide for themselves whether, when and how many children to have. Britain will also directly contribute to preventing more than five million unintended pregnancies. Progress against these commitments will be made publically available through DFID's annual report.
DFID's annual report includes information on global progress towards the Millennium Development Goals, as well as progress in DFID's priority countries. Information on global progress can be found within chapter 2, with progress in DFID's priority countries included within chapter 3.
DFID's annual report for 2010-11 can be found at:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Annual-report/
Somalia: Cholera
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to help restrict the spread of cholera in Somalia. [78824]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: In south-central Somalia, DFID is supporting the efforts of the United Nations Childrens Fund, OXFAM and Action Against Hunger to provide clean water to 500,000 people and construct over 2,000 latrines. DFID and other donors are also supporting partner programmes to upgrade water and sanitation facilities in health centres, promote good hygiene and sanitation practice to prevent diarrhoea and cholera, and do clean up campaigns in high risk areas. With donor support, UNICEF has also engaged world experts from the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research Bangladesh to train staff and treat cholera cases in 17 hospitals.
In Somaliland, diarrhoeal disease prevention kits, funded by DFID, are provided through social franchising networks in 79 private pharmacies. Over 1.2 million water tablets have been purchased and messages on prevention have been given to over 4,000 women over the last year.
Somalia: Overseas Aid
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to ensure that aid is reaching those most in need in (a) Somalia and (b) regions of Southern Somalia under the effective control of al-Shabaab. [78818]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: Since July, the UK Government have allocated £57 million to support humanitarian aid in Somalia, the vast majority of it in Southern Somalia where people are most in need. To date UK aid has provided 247,000 people with food assistance, treated some 7,500 severely malnourished children, vaccinated 500,000 children against measles and supplied 400,000 doses of drugs to treat malaria. I have also pressed other countries to pay their share. The 2011 UN Consolidated Appeal for Somalia is nearly 80% funded—the best funded appeal globally, Nonetheless, huge needs remain unmet.
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The Department for International Development (DFID) humanitarian support is guided by core humanitarian principles, including impartiality. Aid is therefore prioritised to reach those in greatest need. In Somalia most of the people suffering from famine are in areas under the control of Al Shabaab. DFID works with trusted and experienced United Nations, Red Cross and international non-governmental humanitarian organisations who have managed to maintain some access to vulnerable people in Al Shabaab-held areas. DFID partners put in place robust systems to minimise the risks, and ensure aid reaches those most in need.
We are discussing with other actors, including the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, whether they can encourage Al Shabaab to ease access constraints for all humanitarian actors.
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Turkey: Earthquakes
Mr Love: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support his Department is providing to Turkish authorities following the recent earthquake; and whether his Department is providing (a) food, (b) medicines, (c) blankets and tents and (d) heaters; and if he will make a statement. [78235]
Mr Duncan: In response to a specific request from the Turkish Government, the UK Government have provided 1,144 protective winter tents to house 5,500 people who are without shelter. The Turkish Government have not requested food, medicines, blankets, heaters or additional relief commodities. The UK Government will continue to monitor the situation in the affected region.