House of Commons International Development Committee: The humanitarian situation in Tigray (Tenth Report of Session 2019–21)
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30 Apr 2021
UK can lead international response to addressing horrors in Tigray using its combined development and diplomatic prowess within the FCDO
The International Development Committee (IDC) has today said that the UK’s response to the deeply concerning humanitarian situation in Ethiopia’s Tigray region will be an early test of the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, where it’s combined development and diplomatic strengths can be utilised to end the violence and suffering.
Over the last few months, fighting has intensified between Ethiopia’s Federal Government – and those loyal to it – and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. There have been deeply concerning reports of possible war crimes and horrific cases of atrocities such as extrajudicial killings, rapes and other forms of gender-based violence. There are also
MAG raises concerns over humanitarian aid cuts confirmed by UK government
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Last week, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab published a long-awaited statement about the UK government plans to cut aid spending. But the announcement - and Raab s appearance before MPs on the International Development Committee - raised more questions than answers. All that s clear is the world s most vulnerable people will bear the brunt of the UK abandoning its commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of national income on aid.
MAG has joined with hundreds of organisations to raise our concerns. Above all, we are worried about the impact on those in countries affected by conflict, where we know from our work on the ground that humanitarian need is often most acute. The cuts will fall heavily on humanitarian preparedness and response, with initial estimates revealing that the new budget represents a 34 per cent drop compared to last year and a 44 per cent drop against 2019.
IDC launches climate change inquiry ahead of COP26
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20 Apr 2021
The International Development Committee has today launched an inquiry examining, ahead of COP26 in November, the progress the Government has made putting climate change at the centre of aid policy.
Developing countries are disproportionately affected by the impact of climate change, and less able to respond. For example, many lower-income countries are highly indebted and rely more heavily on climate sensitive sectors such as agriculture, forestry and tourism. The World Bank has suggested that Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are among the regions most vulnerable to climate change.
These concerns were echoed in the predecessor Committee’s report
The Foreign Secretary was told that delays to signing off cash for aid agencies - which should have been done almost a month ago - had left them in a state of flux.
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Britain will reverse its major cut to overseas aid spending as soon as the economy recovers from the pandemic, the UK s Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab vowed on Thursday.
Following a major backlash against Britain’s reduction of more than £4 billion ($5.57bn) in international aid, Mr Raab made the unequivocal commitment to return it to 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product “when the fiscal situation allows”.
Despite his promise, he faced a torrent of questions over the impact of the reduction to 0.5 per cent of GDP, including the implications to British national security in the Sahel region where ISIS is growing in strength.