Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what procedures her Department has to determine which countries are at risk of becoming fragile states in order that such risks can be managed.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
DFID maintains a list of fragile states based on open-source data from a range of sources including the World Bank, UN and the World Peace Index. We update this list regularly to reflect changes in the data.
DFID also makes use of the Cabinet Office’s annual Countries at Risk of Instability report and quarterly Countries at Risk of Instability tracker.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department is developing programmes to tackle the (a) interconnectivity of domestic abuse and disability and (b) interconnections between other vulnerable groups.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
My Department recognises that those with disabilities may be more at risk of experiencing violence, and our work to prevent Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) takes into account issues of violence, including domestic abuse, against those with disabilities. We recognise the importance of considering disability in our programming, through for example the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women (to which we contributed £2 million in 2015, a £6 million investment over 3 years), which has this year made a grant to a project focused specifically on access to justice of girls and women with disabilities who have experienced VAWG in Zimbabwe.
DFID supports a comprehensive social inclusion approach to leaving no one behind and to understanding the interconnections between other vulnerable groups including people with disabilities, older people, youth, children, marginalised girls and women, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) communities, indigenous people, different faith groups, refugees and internally displaced persons and migrants. Many face multiple forms of discrimination and disadvantage with women and girls with disabilities particularly at risk as they live with double discrimination. DFID's programming investments are based on an extensive poverty analysis at the country level which includes an assessment of the level of access, opportunity and influence of different geographic and social groups. DFID is currently engaging in a Bilateral and Multilateral Aid Review where country offices and partners are being asked to increase their work on ensuring we reach the most disadvantaged groups such as those experiencing multiple discrimination.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much support her Department makes available to refugees who have experienced trauma.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
DFID provides assistance to refugees through bilateral and central funding to a number of trusted UN and non-governmental organisations.
Many refugees experience psycho-social and psychological trauma and/or distress, and support is provided in many forms of primary and secondary health care that include training in emergency first aid for health care workers, clinical management of rape and counselling support for survivors of sexual violence, mental health care, and also assistance with shelter, legal advice and family reunification for children that have been separated from their families due to forced displacement.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how her Department identifies vulnerable refugees with intellectual impairment; and what support is provided to such people.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
DFID provides assistance to refugees through bilateral and central funding to a number of trusted organisations such as the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the International Organization for Migration, the International Committee of the Red Cross. We are in dialogue with our partners to ensure special consideration is given to the most vulnerable groups, including people with physical and developmental disabilities. In September 2015, DFID issued guidance for staff outlining the specific considerations to be made by DFID partners for those living with disabilities to ensure that their needs are identified and addressed, and that they have opportunity to participate in decisions that affect them. In addition, through the Disaster & Emergencies Preparedness Programme (DEPP) for NGOs, we are supporting the development of a new tool to guide humanitarian agencies on how to ensure their programming is inclusive.