Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many projects funded his Department are focused on gender equality programmes.

​The FCO's departmental allocation supports a range of programme work supporting policy priorities including gender equality. Within this area, there is a particular focus on Women, Peace and Security, Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, Girls' Education and LGBT rights. The programme is agile and adaptive so the number of projects is not static.

In addition, the Commonwealth Fund operated by the FCO 2018-2020 funds two two-year programmes: the network of Women Mediators across the Commonwealth (£1.6m) and a programme to provide support to Commonwealth governments looking to reform legislation that disproportionately affects women and girls and LGBT people (£5.6m).

FCO arms-length bodies, such as the British Council, the BBC World Service, and the Chevening Scholarships Programme, also support gender equality. The FCO's delivery of programmes under the NSC's larger Conflict Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) also contribute to gender equality. All ODA programmes comply with the International Development (Gender Equality) Act (2014).