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Iraq: Business Development
Baroness Tonge asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they played a role in establishing the business skills programmes being developed in partnership between local district councils and the Baghdad Small Business Development Centre. [HL2725]
Baroness Crawley: The Department for International Development is not involved in establishing the business skills programme being developed in partnership between local district councils and the Baghdad Small Business Development Centre (SBDC). This is an initiative supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Iraq: Displaced People
Baroness Northover asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their response to the estimates made by the International Organisation for Migration in its recent report on the number of displaced Iraqis and on the number of internally displaced Iraqis who do not receive government food rations, lack clean water and do not have access to the medications they require. [HL2767]
Baroness Crawley: The UK Government remain concerned about the humanitarian situation in Iraq and the number of people who have been displaced from their homes. We have seen the International Organisation for Migration's (IOM) recent assessment that more than 5.1 million people are now displaced, of whom 2.7 million are displaced inside Iraq. The IOM also estimates that more than 75 per cent of internally displaced people do not have access to government food rations, nearly 20 per cent do not have access to clean water and 33 per cent cannot obtain the medicines they require. However, it remains difficult to obtain accurate data on the humanitarian situation in Iraq, and the figures quoted by humanitarian agencies vary. For example, UNHCR has recently reported that the total number of displaced Iraqis is around 4.4 million, of which 2.4 million are displaced inside Iraq.
Despite uncertainty about exact numbers, it is clear there are humanitarian needs in Iraq that have to be addressed. The Department for International Development is committed to playing its part and is working closely with the IOM, as well as UN agencies and the International Committee of the Red Cross, to ensure urgent needs are met. In March this year, DfID announced a further £15 million in humanitarian assistance for vulnerable Iraqis, including a £1.5 million contribution to the IOM. This money will support humanitarian operations, including efforts to fill the gaps in the Government's food distribution system, repair water and sanitation structures, and rehabilitate
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Iraq: Female Education
Baroness Tonge asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their response to the recent report by Women for Women International which found a substantial drop in the number of girls being enrolled in school over the past five years in Iraq; and [HL2726]
What is their response to the latest figures published by the United Nations which suggest that the number of illiterate women in Iraq has increased from 2 per cent in the 1970s and 1980s to 27 per cent today. [HL2727]
Baroness Crawley: The UK Government share the concerns about gender disparities as well as general lack of access for children to education in Iraq. In March this year, the Department for International Development announced contributions to the UN's Children Fund (UNICEF) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), totalling £5 million. These contributions will support the provision of emergency learning spaces and school equipment, rehabilitation of education facilities, and transportation for children to school, as well as meeting other priority needs among vulnerable Iraqis. This support forms part of DfID's overall humanitarian contributions for Iraq, totalling £147 million since 2003.
DfID has not seen the UN figures the noble Baroness quotes on female literacy in Iraq. The UNICEF report of last year estimated that overall literacy rates may have been around 74 per cent in 2006, compared to 52 per cent in 1977 and 72 per cent in 1987 following the education campaigns of the 1970s and 1980s. The report did not give figures for female literacy rates in the 1970s and 1980s but estimated they were around 64 per cent in 2006.
Baroness Northover asked Her Majesty's Government:
What proportion of girls are enrolled in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Iraq; and how this compares with five years ago. [HL2770]
Baroness Crawley: There is a lack of reliable data on the overall situation in the education sector in Iraq, and the enrolment of girls in education more specifically. The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) offers the following statistics, which indicate a slight increase in girls' enrolment at all levels of education between 2002 and 2005:
| Iraq Education—Female General Enrolment Ratio (%) | ||
| 2002 | 2005 | |
| (e) = estimate | ||
We do not have enrolment data for 2006 and 2007.
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Iraq: Power Supply
Baroness Northover asked Her Majesty's Government:
What assistance they are providing to reconstruct, repair and upgrade the power system in Iraq, including generation, transmission and distribution; and [HL2687]
What assistance they are providing to the Iraqi Commission of Electricity in drafting and implementing policy. [HL2688]
Baroness Crawley: Since 2003 the Department for International Development (DfID) has spent £90 million on infrastructure projects in southern Iraq, of which £84 million has been on the power sector. We have added or secured 415 megawatts of electricity to the Iraqi national grid, and will be adding or securing a further 60 megawatts over the next few months, enough to provide 24 hours of power for around 1 million people. This has been achieved by repairing damaged electricity transmission and distribution networks, including transmission lines from al-Hartha power station to Basra city (securing electricity supplies for 1.5 million residents), and the al-Hartha power station chimney (securing electricity supplies for 340,000 people).
DfID is not providing any support to the Iraqi Commission of Electricity in drafting and implementing policy. We have been encouraging the Government of Iraq to approach the World Bank for advice on the energy sector, including power, as we believe that the bank is best placed to provide this assistance.
Iraq: Refugees
Lord Steel of Aikwood asked Her Majesty's Government:
What assistance they are giving to the refugees in the al-Tanf and al-Waleed camps on the Iraq border. [HL2642]
Baroness Crawley: The UK Government remain concerned about the situation for the more than 2,700 Palestinian refugees in the al-Tanf and al-Waleed camps on the Iraqi-Syrian border. The Department for International Development supports these refugees through contributions to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). DfID recently announced a further £15 million in humanitarian assistance for Iraq, of which £10 million has gone to UNHCR and ICRC. This money will support displaced people in and from Iraq, including the Palestinians in the al-Tanf and al-Waleed camps. UNHCR and ICRC provide camp maintenance and medical assistance for the Palestinian refugees. UNHCR also pursues possibilities for resettlement for a number of these refugees to third countries.
DfID has contributed £147 million in humanitarian assistance for Iraq since 2003, of which £56 million has gone to UNHCR and ICRC.
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Baroness Northover asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their response to the letter sent by 24 refugee and human rights agencies to the Prime Minister on 18 March on Iraqi refugees. [HL2768]
Baroness Crawley: The UK Government share the concerns for displaced Iraqis, as set out by the 24 NGOs in the open letter of 18 March to the UK and Iraqi Prime Ministers and the US President.
It is a priority for the UK Government to alleviate humanitarian suffering among displaced and vulnerable Iraqis. This is the reason the Department for International Development has recently announced a further £15 million in humanitarian assistance. The money will go to the UN-led Consolidated Appeal for Iraq, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This takes the UK Government's overall humanitarian assistance contributions for Iraq to £147 million since 2003. DfID's contributions have supported the provision of food, financial and legal aid to displaced and other vulnerable Iraqis. It has also supported the rehabilitation of hospital water and sanitation structures in Iraq and the upgrading of health and education facilities in host communities and countries. In addition, the UK is a major contributor to the European Commission (EC). Last year, the EC allocated €50 million in support of Iraqi refugees in the Middle East region. This included €9 million to support Syrian public health services in areas with large Iraqi populations, and €26.7 million to build capacity in the Jordanian education sector to accommodate Iraqi refugee children.
DfID's contributions to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) support the protection of Iraqi refugees in the Middle East region. By registering with UNHCR, refugees obtain improved legal protection in countries that have not signed up to the 1951 Geneva Refugee Convention. UNHCR is continuously increasing its outreach efforts to register more Iraqis in countries such as Jordan and Syria. UNHCR also provides food and financial assistance to prevent destitution among the refugees. Other protection measures include UNHCR support to safe houses for victims of domestic violence and other vulnerable women and children in Syria.
Iraq: Water Treatment
Baroness Northover asked Her Majesty's Government:
What attempts they have made to restore the operating capacity of Iraq's 140 major water treatment centres, which currently operate at 65 per cent efficiency; and [HL2684]
What role they have played in rehabilitating the 15 water treatment facilities and portions of the Sweet Water Canal to Basra; and [HL2685]
What role they have played in the World Bank's two projects, Emergency Water, Sanitation and Urban Reconstruction, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works, and Emergency Baghdad Water Supply and Sanitation,
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Baroness Crawley: In 2003, Iraq's 140 major water treatment facilities were operating at about 35 per cent of their design capacity (3 billion litres a day) due to inadequate maintenance, lack of plant operators, power shortages and looting. The international donor community, including the UK, US, World Bank and Japanese, are helping improve the efficiency and reliability of existing treatment facilities and the US has constructed several new facilities, especially in the south where water quality is particularly poor.
The Department for International Development has committed more than £100 million to infrastructure regeneration projects in Iraq. By May, we will have improved access to water for 1 million people. We have replaced 200 kilometres of water mains, repaired over 5,000 leaks, cleared out 7,000 septic tanks and cleared more than 40 kilometres of drains. We have refurbished a reverse osmosis unit in Basra to supply potable water to about 500,000 people. We have also improved water supply to 60,000 people in al-Amtahiyah, and constructed a water training centre in Basra to increase the skills of Iraqi engineers in water treatment and leakage repair. Finally, we have provided technical advice for a major sewage installation in al-Amarah, providing up to half the city's population with access to a piped system and replacing open sewage channels.
The US has rehabilitated the Sweet Water Canal system, repairing breaches, cleaning and repairing the main water storage and settling reservoir and refurbishing 14 water treatment plants around Basra city. The UK Royal Engineers have completed a project, funded by DfID, to install low lift pumps to provide a secondary source of domestic water supply to the 2 million population of Basra.
The two World Bank emergency water and sanitation projects in Iraq are being funded through the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq (IRFFI)—a multilateral mechanism made up of two trust funds, one managed by the United Nations and the other by the World Bank. Donors have pledged more than $1.77 billion for reconstruction projects through the IRFFI, of which DfID made a contribution of $127 million in 2004.
Israel and Palestine: Gaza
Baroness Northover asked Her Majesty’s Government:
What representations they have made to the Government of Israel about reports from the International Committee of the Red Cross claiming that the Gaza Strip’s sewage system is incapable of handling its waste. [HL2912]
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Malloch-Brown): We remain gravely concerned about the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the poor state of essential services, including water and sanitation. In a briefing to the diplomatic corps on 26 March, Israeli Defence Minister Barak
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My right honourable friends the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for International Development issued statements on 11 and 21 January 2008 expressing their deep concern about the humanitarian impact of the restrictions imposed by the Government of Israel on Gaza and urging Israel to lift all restrictions.
My right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary has also reiterated our concerns in phone calls with Israeli Foreign Minister Livni and Defence Minister Barak in recent weeks.
Our embassy in Tel Aviv continues to raise this issue on a regular basis with the Israelis.
Israel and Palestine: Negotiations
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty’s Government:
Whether they will take steps with their European Union Middle East road map partners to ensure that substantive rather than partial negotiations are started by Israel and the Palestinian Authority with a view to ensuring the creation of a Palestinian state by the end of this year. [HL2914]
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Malloch-Brown): The EU, as a member of the quartet (US, UN, EU and Russia), has an important political role to play in the Middle East peace process. My right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary has regular discussions with international partners, including EU colleagues, on the peace process. The EU presidency issued a declaration on 14 March 2008 expressing the European Council’s full support for the Annapolis process and its commitment to support the parties in their negotiations with a view to achieving an agreement this year leading to a two-state solution. The EU continues to demonstrate its commitment to the peace process by: providing political support; giving practical support to Palestinian institutions; capacity and economic development; and effective monitoring to hold the parties to their commitments.
Israel and Palestine: Prisoners
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty’s Government:
What plans they have to request further releases of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons. [HL2915]
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