Asked by
To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of
the famine in the Horn of Africa.
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office ( of Richmond Park) (Con)
My Lords, the crisis in east Africa continues to worsen. Drought
is causing significant levels of food insecurity. Over 51 million
people in the region are estimated to be facing severe food
insecurity, and of particular concern is the recent data from the
Bay region in Somalia projecting that famine is likely to occur
this year. The UK is a major humanitarian donor to the east
Africa region and UK-funded activities are making a difference
and saving lives. In the financial year 2022-23, the UK intends
to provide approximately £156 million in humanitarian aid across
east Africa. Of this amount, nearly 50% has already been
allocated to help those affected by this devastating crisis.
My Lords, a combination of conflict, climate change, increasing
world food prices and a fifth year of drought means that we have
an absolute humanitarian crisis hitting this part of the world.
In Somalia alone, the UN is estimating that about half a million
children are likely to die shortly. We have slashed our aid
budgets to that part of the world. We need emergency funding as
well as long-term funding. What can we do in addition to what the
Minister has said in working with our international partners to
get emergency aid into those areas which are dreadfully affected?
of Richmond Park (Con)
My Lords, it is absolutely right to say that the UK reduced the
proportion of its GNI spending on overseas aid from 0.7% to 0.5%,
but we are committed to returning to 0.7%. Like many noble Lords,
I hope that happens as soon as possible, but in the meantime it
is worth reiterating—to remind the House—that we remain one of
the world’s most generous donors, particularly when it comes to
humanitarian assistance, and the proportion of our ODA which goes
toward the very poorest people in the world is higher than that
of any of the other G7 donor countries, I believe. It is an
important point that if you tot up all the international aid
provided year on year, which comes to around $160 billion a year,
that is not a patch on the actual needs, so we will not solve
these problems through ODA alone. That is why our emphasis in the
UK on facilitating easier trade with poorer countries and
bringing investment to them is so important to leverage the
support we can give.
(Con)
My Lords, further to the excellent question from the right
reverend Prelate, does the Minister agree that there are now
indications that some of the humanitarian aid is being
intercepted and interrupted by that vile terrorist organisation,
al-Shabaab? What assessment has he made of this and what measures
can be taken to try to stop it?
of Richmond Park (Con)
My noble friend makes a hugely important point. The challenge of
delivering humanitarian assistance to countries where there are
so many people in need but where the authorities are not always
moving in lockstep with us makes things very much more difficult.
In Somalia, it is now estimated that nearly 8 million
people—approximately half of the country’s population—currently
need humanitarian assistance. We will continue to focus as much
of our support as possible in that region and the wider region of
the Horn of Africa, while using whatever leverage we have to
deliver political stability in Somalia.
(LD)
My Lords, during the 10 minutes of this Question, 12 people will
die of severe hunger and malnutrition in the Horn of Africa. I
declare that I was in the wider region over the recess. The scale
of the Government’s cuts is adding to the problem. The UK
committed £861 million in 2017 to support a less severe famine,
and there is now less than a third of that from UK support.
Hospitals that serve children in Somalia are closing which the UK
was directly funding. At the very least, can the Minister
intervene to ensure that hospitals that serve children are not
being closed as a result of UK cuts?
of Richmond Park (Con)
My Lords, the UK-supported humanitarian activities are saving
lives and having immeasurable impacts. In the year 2021-22, we
provided a total of £230 million in humanitarian assistance to
the east Africa region, to which the noble Lord referred. In the
current financial year, the UK intends to provide £156 million in
addition to that. The impact of our work can be seen and measured
but, in the light of the undoubted ODA pressures that we face, we
are doing everything we can to prioritise spending where it is
most needed, tackling the most acute humanitarian crises.
(Lab)
My Lords, the Horn of Africa is now entering an unprecedented
fifth failed rainy season, which is having devastating
consequences for the local population. Can the Minister outline
when the Government will reinstate the overseas aid budget to
0.7% of GNI? Will it be this year, next year or in 2024?
of Richmond Park (Con)
My Lords, I would love to be able to answer that question, but I
cannot. The Treasury set a test, with which the House is
familiar, and it will be the Treasury that decides when we have
met that test. My hope, like that of everyone here, is that we
pass that test sooner rather than later and that we resume our
0.7% commitment.
(Con)
My Lords, the UK aid budget is under additional pressure after
the cut from 0.7%, as the Government may be planning to charge an
estimated £3 billion of domestic refugee costs to ODA, which
would amount to about 25% of what we would normally spend
overseas. I am sure we are all in favour of supporting Ukrainian
refugees in this country, but I hope that this will not be done
at the expense of children and their families who are in so much
need in the Horn of Africa. Can my noble friend confirm the
domestic refugee cost for this year and tell me how it will be
funded?
of Richmond Park (Con)
My Lords, my noble friend is right. The Government’s response to
the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, the wider ODA pressures, including
the ODA-eligible expenditure incurred through the Afghan
resettlement programme and the UK support to people fleeing
Ukraine, has put unexpected and significant pressure on the ODA
budget. The Foreign Office and the Treasury are in discussion as
to how much of that funding should be categorised as ODA and how
much should not. Of course, the hope has to be that there is as
little impact as possible on the broader ODA budget, and that is
certainly the Foreign Office’s position.
(Lab)
My Lords, the right reverend Prelate referred to the underlying
causes. One persistent underlying cause has been conflict. The
situation in Tigray is of particular concern, especially as it
has involved awful crimes against humanity. What steps is the
Minister’s department taking to work with our allies to ensure
that we can bring peace to this region, so that all the
development support measures can have effect?
of Richmond Park (Con)
My Lords, the situation in Ethiopia is particularly alarming.
Ethiopia was the country that, for many people, opened our eyes
to some of the problems of acute famine in the world. It was the
beginning of a whole bunch of UN and philanthropic programmes
designed to tackle acute famine—both the immediate effects and
prevention. Ethiopia is now relapsing to those days. Millions of
people in Ethiopia face the real prospect of famine returning.
That is exacerbated massively by the conflict to which the noble
Lord refers. This is a priority for us. It is an issue raised at
every opportunity by the Minister for Africa. I do not want to
exaggerate the potential power we have as a country to bring such
conflict to an end, but we are using whatever levers we have, and
on a routine basis.
(LD)
My Lords, it is clear that climate change is making these events
more frequent and more intense, so do the Government support the
Climate Vulnerable Forum’s call for COP 27 to commission an IPCC
special report specifically focused on loss and damage? If the
answer is no, perhaps the Minister can say why such a report
would be undesirable.
of Richmond Park (Con)
My Lords, I have spoken regularly to representatives of the
Climate Vulnerable Forum, and they make a very strong argument on
loss and damage. They would probably agree that it is because of
our presidency of COP 26 that loss and damage now has a chapter
within the annual COPs where that can be discussed. It will be
for the donor countries at COP 27 to determine how far they want
to go, but the UK’s position is that the arguments are very
strong, we will maintain our commitment to £11.6 billion for
international climate finance, and are doing everything we can to
encourage other countries to step up as well.
(CB)
Although I agree with the Minister that the bolstering of
humanitarian aid is critical and essential, does he accept that
the mantra of poverty alleviation should be to achieve more with
less? With that innovation, much more can be done to assist
peoples around the world. How might that be achieved, and might
not the private sector play a critical part in that process?
of Richmond Park (Con)
The noble Viscount is absolutely right. There is no way these
problems can be solved through ODA or other aid alone; it is just
not possible. That is why the UK has taken an innovative approach
to trade, for example. I believe that 65 poorer countries now
enjoy simpler, cleaner trade access to the UK than they had
before. In many respects, in many of those countries, that is
worth more than they could ever expect to receive in aid. That is
just one example of what the UK is trying to do to leverage our
position to deliver more than just 0.5% or, I hope soon, 0.7%.
