Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of UK Government-funded nutrition programmes in developing countries.

DFID undertakes reviews of all its programmes, including nutrition programmes, on an annual basis, including whether intended outcomes and impacts are being achieved. We also invest in evaluating our programmes to enable us to learn what works and to adapt our approaches accordingly.

In 2020, we have been looking across DFID’s country portfolio to assess where there is scope to improve how we address malnutrition as part of the government’s commitment to end the preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children – and considering current efforts to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Independent Commission for Aid Impact is close to finalising its review of DFID’s work on nutrition. This will provide important insights into how we can further strengthen the work we do, and we look forward to receiving the final report in September.