Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase the amount of funding allocated to the Rapid Response Facility to an amount commensurate to the delivery capacity and reach of non-governmental organisations.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Decisions on allocating funds through the Rapid Response Facility (RRF) are being made in relation to the wider DFID COVID19 response. We have no current plans to increase the amount of funding allocated to the RRF, but will keep the funding under review as we do with all our humanitarian interventions. DFID is also adapting its programmes across its country network to respond to COVID-19 and has committed significant new funding through the multilateral system. We expect NGOs to play a key role in delivery through both these channels, and indeed recognise that in many places NGOs will be best placed to meet the needs of those most vulnerable, at risk and hard to reach. In addition, extra funding has been allocated to NGOs through the DFID Unilever COVID-19 Hygiene and Behaviour Change Coalition.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of COVID-19 on reaching the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 both in the UK and globally.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
COVID-19 is the biggest crisis of a generation and has a wide range of primary and secondary impacts, as set out in a recent UN report on the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19.
The crisis is ongoing and therefore a full assessment of its impacts on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) both domestically and globally is not possible at this stage. The COVID-19 crisis poses real risks for eroding progress on the SDGs, and the associated economic slowdown will increase the challenge of implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, especially in light of the challenges highlighted prior to the COVID-19 outbreak in the UN SDGs Report 2019.
The UK remains committed to the achieving the SDGs both domestically and globally. The SDGs will play a key role in post-COVID-19 recovery, recognising the connection between healthy lives, healthy societies and a healthy environment. It is more important than ever that we work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that gender-based violence will be a strategic priority in the COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
The UK is deeply concerned about the surge in gender-based violence (GBV) during the COVID-19 pandemic. We have consistently encouraged the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to prioritise GBV within the Global Humanitarian Response Plan (GHRP) through bilateral channels and joint advocacy with other donors. Revising the GHRP to explicitly include a standalone objective on GBV will prove lifesaving for women and girls.
Whilst we are pleased to see improvements in how GBV is being addressed overall in the GHRP, the UK will continue to champion a standalone objective on GBV in future versions. All UN agencies and international actors must demonstrate that the shadow pandemic of GBV is taken seriously in the global response to COVID-19 and be held accountable for addressing GBV.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that UK aid donated bilaterally and through the UN is reaching Rojava in north east Syria.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
UK aid continues to reach communities in North East Syria. DFID support is distributed via a number of UN agencies and Non-Governmental Organisations, and targets those in acute need across the North East. It balances provision of vital, life-saving supplies such as food, water, shelter and healthcare, with helping communities recover from life under Daesh occupation, for example, by providing grants to small businesses. DFID has rigorous and robust checks to monitor partners’ activity and ensure aid goes to those in acute need across the North East.
Between April and September 2019, DFID support to Al-Hasakeh, Al-Raqqa and Deir Ez-Zor governorates and provided: over 325,000 medical consultations, over 5,000 food rations; clean drinking water to over 41,000 people, access to education to over 30,000 pupils, and has helped over 5,000 people with business development.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there will be a sustained focus on women and girls in developing countries in the forthcoming Department for International Development Spending Review.
Answered by Lord Bates
Gender equality is a top development priority and a top priority for the UK. Our manifesto and legislative commitments put girls and women at the heart of development and humanitarian spending. The process for agreeing Spending Review commitments will commence in the autumn, under a Treasury lead.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the £212 million of support to Commonwealth countries for education projects announced by the Prime Minister on 17 April at the Joint Plenary Forum at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting will include grants to small organisations in Commonwealth countries.
Answered by Lord Bates
This funding will be spent through our Girls’ Education Challenge (GEC) programme, which currently supports 17 projects across the Commonwealth to reach nearly one million marginalised girls. Projects are delivered by consortia that include both international and national partners. Funding under the GEC is awarded competitively to ensure strong value for money for the British taxpayer.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much money they disbursed through the Girls’ Education Challenge in (1) 2013, (2) 2014, (3) 2015, (4) 2016, and (5) 2017.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Girls’ Education Challenge programme disbursed (1) £59,122,772 in 2013 (2) £82,232,356 in 2014 (3) £88,297,633 in 2015 (4) £92,727,843 in 2016, and (5) £69,995,242 in 2017. These figures include the cost for an independent evaluation of the programme.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of the overseas development assistance budget for education was spent in fragile or conflict-affected states in (1) 2015, (2) 2016, and (3) 2017.
Answered by Lord Bates
In 2015 the UK spent £651,529m of Official Development Assistance on Education. Of this 61% was spent in Fragile or Conflict Affected States and regions (FCAS*).
In 2016 the UK spent £961,015m of Official Development Assistance on Education. Of this 58% was spent in Fragile or Conflict Affected States and regions (FCAS).
It is not possible to provide this information for 2017 as 2017 UK ODA figures have not yet been published.
This data is reflected in the table below.
Year | Total UK Bilateral ODA Spent on Education in FCAS | Total UK Bilateral ODA spent on Education | Percentage of UK ODA Education Budget spent in FCAS |
2015 | £397,001,000.00 | £651,529,000.00 | 61% |
2016 | £557,077,000.00 | £961,015,000.00 | 58% |
*This answer uses DFID’s 2015 list of FCAS here
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how they will ensure that the £212 million of support to Commonwealth countries for education projects announced by the Prime Minister on 17 April at the Joint Plenary Forum at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting will deliver quality education to girls.
Answered by Lord Bates
This funding will be spent through our Girls’ Education Challenge (GEC) programme, which currently supports 17 projects across the Commonwealth. The GEC helps drive quality education for marginalised girls through funding activities such as improving teaching quality and after-school clubs. Each project is independently evaluated to measure improvement in girls’ literacy, numeracy and other metrics as a result of DFID funding. Overall, the GEC programme has consistently scored A in its annual progress reviews since 2014.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to respond to the recommendations made by the Independent Commission for Aid Impact in their performance review Accessing, staying and succeeding in basic education—UK aid’s support to marginalised girls, published in December 2016.
Answered by Lord Bates
We have taken comprehensive action on the issues identified by the Independent Commission for Aid Impact in their report. This has included: a focus on marginalised girls in our recent education policy; strengthening co-ordination between our Girls’ Education Challenge programme and bilateral education spend; and embedding equity into our education sector Value for Money guidance. We continue to champion this important issue through our cross-Government work on securing 12 years of quality education for all girls globally.