Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help increase literacy rates in (a) Africa and (b) Asia.
Answered by Wendy Morton
The UK Government helps many of the most marginalised children in Africa and Asia gain critical foundational skills (literacy and numeracy) needed to progress in school. Even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, 9 in 10 children in low income countries could not read a simple story by the age of ten. Now, with two-thirds of the academic year lost on average worldwide due to school closures, an additional 72 million children are expected to fall behind and fail to read by the time they leave primary school, with girls disproportionately impacted.
In response to school closures in Pakistan, UK technical support to the Government has provided teachers with scripted lessons and students with learning materials, benefitting more than 8.5 million students, including 4.3 million girls. In Ethiopia, the UK has helped the Government with school reopening and post COVID 19 recovery plans, working to improve the literacy and numeracy skills of over 1 million primary school aged children in the most marginalised parts of the country. Through our presidency of the G7 this year, the UK is asking G7 members and global education partners to raise their ambitions for girls education and endorse two new global targets - to get 40 million more girls into school and 20 million more girls reading by age 10 in low and lower middle income countries by 2026.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in the Government of Chad in response to the death of the former President of Chad, Idriss Déby.
Answered by James Duddridge
I am concerned by the situation in Chad. My thoughts are with those mourning the death of President Déby and others who have died in fighting. The Foreign Secretary and I have publicly called for an end to violence in Chad. It is vital that stability is restored in order to allow for a peaceful, inclusive transition to civilian and constitutional rule.
We continue to engage closely with our international partners on developments in Chad. Through our Ambassador (designate) to Chad and our Sahel Envoy, we are holding regular discussions with the US, France and Germany. I have discussed the situation with regional leaders, including on my visit to Nigeria and with the AU's Commissioner for Political Affairs, Ambassador Bankole Adeoye. Ministers have not held discussions with Chad's transitional authorities following the death of President Déby.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to increase the level of democracy in countries in Africa categorised as Not Free by the Freedom House index for 2020.
Answered by James Duddridge
It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Indian counterpart on the application of blasphemy laws in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
India has a proud history of religious tolerance and we look to the Government of India to address concerns raised about articles in the Indian Penal Code which relate to religion. Human rights forms a regular part of our dialogue with the Government of India. On 15 March, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister of State responsible for Human Rights and South Asia, discussed the situation for Christians with India's Minister of State for Home Affairs, Kishan Reddy. Our Acting High Commissioner in New Delhi also discussed UK Parliamentary interest in minorities in India with officials from India's Ministry of External Affairs on 5 January, and a senior FCDO official discussed the situation for India's religious minorities with the Indian High Commissioner on 29 December 2020
Staff in our diplomatic network across India regularly meet religious representatives and have run projects promoting minority rights. Over the last three years, they have worked with local NGOs to bring together young people of diverse faith backgrounds to work together on social action projects in their local communities and promote a culture of interfaith tolerance. This year, they supported an interfaith leadership programme for a cohort of emerging Indian faith leaders, creating an opportunity to exchange expertise on leading modern, inclusive faith communities.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in African countries ranked in the bottom quartile of the Economic Freedom Rankings by the Fraser institution on liberalising their economies.
Answered by James Duddridge
I regularly engage with our counterparts in African countries on economic policies, including those ranked in the bottom quartile of the Economic Freedom Rankings. As set out in the Integrated Review, the UK Government is committed to the promotion of free and fair trade around the world and has already concluded trade agreements with 15 African countries. The UK Government supports economic development of African countries through a variety of channels, and UK investors have continued to invest throughout 2020 and 2021, meaning the £15.4 billion of deals made around the 2020 Africa Investment Summit are on track.
Looking specifically at countries in the bottom quartile of the Economic Freedom Rankings, in the past 6 months FCDO Ministers have visited Ethiopia, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Republic of Congo, Cameroon, and Malawi. These visits included discussions on improving economic development and trade policies. Such discussions have also taken place with other countries in the bottom quartile of the rankings. There are many examples of how our economic development support in these countries has delivered impact including:
In DRC the UK has helped to reduce multiple corruption opportunities, encourage increased formalisation, and has reduced the time taken to register a business by 22 days.
The UK's £6.8 million of support to the 'Malawi Innovation Challenge Fund' has leveraged over $9.8 million in private capital into medium and small enterprises which created over 3,400 permanent jobs, almost half of these for women.
In Sudan the UK has supported the reforms process we have seen progress on exchange rate, subsidies, and the early improvements to the enabling environment for trade and investment.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the US Tibet Policy Support Act 2020.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We are aware of the US Tibet Policy Support Act 2020, which calls for reciprocal access to Tibet and makes it official US policy that the succession of the Dalai Lama should be left solely to Tibetan Buddhists to decide. The UK continues to call for unfettered access to the Tibet Autonomous Region, and seeks a reciprocal, fair and transparent system of access for our diplomats and citizens. British diplomats last visited the Tibet Autonomous Region in July 2019, following a request for access by our Embassy in Beijing. We periodically request access to the Tibet Autonomous Region, but did not do so in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic. We continue to raise our concerns about the human rights situation in Tibet with the Chinese authorities, including through joint statements in the UN's human rights bodies, and call on them to uphold the rights of all citizens guaranteed in international law and China's own constitution.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the social credit system in China on freedom of religion or belief in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We remain deeply concerned about the persecution of Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Falun Gong practitioners and others on the grounds of their religion or belief in China. The freedom to practise, change or share ones faith or belief without discrimination or violent opposition is a human right that all people should enjoy. Alongside partners, we have expressed concerns to China's authorities that elements of its social credit system may infringe on the freedom of expression as set out in China's constitution and international instruments. We believe that societies which aim to guarantee freedom of religion or belief are more stable, prosperous and more resilient against violent extremism.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Indian counterpart on countering the influence of the China in the Indo-Pacific.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK's ambition in the Indo-Pacific is to have a broad and integrated presence - with a long term commitment to closer and deeper partnerships, bilaterally and multilaterally. The Foreign Secretary has discussed the UK's Indo-Pacific tilt with his Indian counterpart and our shared vision of an inclusive and rules-based Indo-Pacific region, including during his visit to India in December 2020 and his phone call with his Indian counterpart on 3 March.