Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her Department's priority countries are; and which of her Department's country offices will receive reduced support following her Department's recent policy reviews.

As the Bilateral Development Review set out, DFID is increasing investment in fragile states and countries emerging from conflict, and significantly scaling up support for the Middle East. We are focussing more strongly on the Sahel, alongside our work in northern Nigeria, Somalia and other countries in the ‘arc of instability’ in Africa.

DFID’s allocations are continually reviewed to ensure development assistance is used most effectively to achieve poverty reduction in the national interest and responds to changing global needs. Planned programme allocations for 2016/17 and 2017/18 in the countries where we currently have direct activities were published in DFID’s 2015/16 Annual Report.