Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many countries allow British citizens to travel to them without a visa.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
FCDO Travel Advice provides information to British nationals on entry requirements for travelling overseas, including any visa requirements. Travel Advice pages are kept under regular review.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what advice and support they are providing to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK works closely with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) as part of the UN's architecture in Africa. Through the UK's Office for National Statistics, we also have a long-running programme of support to the African Centre for Statistics in UNECA which includes embedding a strategic adviser to contribute to regional guidance and support member states on statistical modernisation.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are providing to the African Union to increase the participation of women in positions of political leadership across the continent.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK supports the African Union's efforts to increase women's participation in political processes in Africa through their Conflict and Governance Programme. Through the programme, we support women's participation in election monitoring missions, transitional justice initiatives and the implementation of National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security. The programme also provides direct support to 'FemWise,' the Network of African Women in Conflict Prevention and Mediation. This helps to underpin the inclusion of, and leadership from, women in political processes across Africa.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what advice and support they are providing to the African Union's Agenda 2063 programme in the field of education.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Improving education in Africa is a priority for the UK, and we provide support across a range of programmes. Whilst the UK does not provide direct financial support to the Africa Union (AU) Agenda 2063 programme in the field of education, we are a champion of AU efforts in this area. We participated in the Foundational Learning Conference, hosted by the African Union in Addis Ababa in September 2024, and will attend the Africa Education Conference, to be hosted in Mauritania in December 2024, as part of the AU's focus on education this year.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the human rights situation in Côte d’Ivoire.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
On 5 November, at Côte d'Ivoire's Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council, the UK pressed Côte d'Ivoire to improve rights of freedom of association, assembly and peaceful demonstration ahead of next year's Presidential elections. We also highlighted the need to protect civil society and the rights and physical safety of LGBT+ individuals who continue to face widespread discrimination. We do recognise however that Côte d'Ivoire has taken steps to improve its human rights situation in recent years, developing its legal and institutional framework for human rights and playing an active role on the UN's Human Rights Council. The UK Government is committed to work closely with local civil society, human rights defenders and the Government of Côte d'Ivoire on human rights.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the human rights situation in Zimbabwe.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We continue to monitor the human rights situation in Zimbabwe. The UK continues to engage with the Government of Zimbabwe on the importance of upholding the rule of law, including constitutional rights to assembly and association and to ensure due process for all Zimbabweans. We are committed to maintaining a constructive dialogue with the Government of Zimbabwe which will enable us to pursue shared interests, support Zimbabwe's most vulnerable people, deepen our strong people-to-people links and raise issues relating to human rights.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what advice and support they are providing to the African Union's Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is an active supporter of the African Union's Comprehensive Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP). We engage closely in the Development Partners Coordination Group and the Technical Working Group that support the CAADP agenda. UK funding for CAADP is channelled through various agricultural support programmes, including the Africa Food Trade and Resilience Programme. This UK support helps African partners to eliminate hunger and reduce poverty by supporting economic growth through agriculture-led development.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 to deliver inclusive and sustainable development in Africa and transform it into "the global powerhouse of the future"; and what engagement they are having with partners to support the delivery of those aims.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
On 30 October, the UK and the African Union held our inaugural High Level Dialogue, hosted by the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for Africa. At the Dialogue, Minister Mitchell announced further UK funding in support of the African Union's 2063 Agenda, and for its flagship Silencing the Guns campaign. This includes £10 million in stipends to support troops in Somalia, bringing our total commitment to the AU Transition Mission in Somalia since 2022 to more than £57 million.
We are also providing £3 million through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's Tackling Deadly Diseases in African Programme, helping the Africa Centres for Disease Control and World Health Organisation address emergency preparedness and response in the continent.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government in which countries the UK does not have a permanent diplomatic presence.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has a network of 281 officially designated overseas Posts. It does not currently have a permanent diplomatic presence in the countries listed below. However, the list includes countries in which we have officially designated Posts which are temporarily suspended in country and our mission to that country operates elsewhere for political or operational reasons (Afghanistan, North Korea, Sudan, Syria, Yemen) or have diplomatic staff who are not in permanent residence (Haiti, Burundi, Gabon). Locations defined as UK territories are excluded. Information about the FCDO overseas network is available at www.gov.uk/government/publications/list-of-foreign-office-posts.
Key:
(1) Temporarily suspended
(2) Diplomats not in permanent residence
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many countries have permanent diplomatic representation in the UK.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office publishes details of foreign embassies, high commissions and consulates in the UK on gov.uk, at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foreign-embassies-in-the-uk.
This page includes the London Diplomatic List (LDL), which contains details of all embassies and high commissions, as well as the names of heads of mission and other diplomatic agents appointed in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. The LDL lists 169 diplomatic missions with their permanent seat in the UK. 17 countries have non-resident diplomatic representation to the UK. Nine countries are represented by an Honorary Consul.