Ethiopia

Baroness Anelay of St Johns Excerpts

Monday 4th April 2022 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Anelay of St Johns]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the humanitarian situation in Ethiopia.

[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con)]

My Lords, the humanitarian situation in Ethiopia, from north to south, is grave and is worsening. This year, nearly 30 million people throughout the country will require life-saving aid. In the northern regions, conflict has affected more than 9 million people, including 5.2 million people in Tigray, where humanitarian access is negligible. Deteriorating drought conditions in southern and eastern regions are impacting nearly 7 million people.

[Baroness Anelay of St Johns (Con)]

My Lords, can my noble friend update the House specifically on the significant increase in the cost of delivering and buying food aid for Ethiopia, as a result of Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine—a country that has been a significant exporter of both wheat and pulses to Ethiopia via the humanitarian aid system? Can my noble friend say what work is being done with international friends in order to ensure that food can still survive that huge increase in costs? I understand, for example, that the UN World Food Programme says that it will be over $600 million short over the next six months as a result of these problems.

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)]

My Lords, I agree with my noble friend. Since November 2020, the UK has allocated more than £86 million in response to the humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia, but this was in advance of the situation in Ukraine—and it is not just conflict zones that are being impacted. This morning, I had a meeting with the Tunisian ambassador, who outlined the challenge being felt by the economy of Tunisia, and indeed economies across the world, because of the situation in Ukraine. Ukraine’s own Foreign Minister said, “We were the bread basket for so much of the world and now we are having to ask for support ourselves”.

In answer to my noble friend’s second question, we have been working very closely with international partners, particularly the World Food Programme. My noble friend will be aware that, over the weekend, a humanitarian convoy finally reached Tigray for the first time. This is the first time that this has happened and that overland access has been possible in nearly four months. We will continue to ensure that resourcing, including food aid, is prioritised.