Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the needs of vulnerable elderly people in humanitarian emergencies such as those currently trapped in Aleppo and other besieged Syrian cities, and the 1.65 million older people in Yemen.
Answered by Lord Bates
When carrying out humanitarian assessments and responding to humanitarian needs, DFID and our partners take into account the specific needs of those who may be more vulnerable, including the elderly.
In Syria mitigating diseases that are common amongst the elderly is a priority. DFID is providing flu vaccines and support for the treatment of diabetes and high blood pressure. This is part of the £717million DFID is providing to support vulnerable people inside Syria. In Aleppo and other besieged areas, DFID funded partners are providing food, clean water, shelter and healthcare to meet the needs of vulnerable Syrians, including the elderly, where access is possible.
In Yemen, DFID is providing £100million this financial year in humanitarian aid to support vulnerable Yeminis, including the elderly. This will be delivered through partners such as the UN and NGOs, and includes food, medical supplies, water, healthcare and nutritional supplies.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government to what extent ageing and older people in developing countries remain an issue of concern for the Department for International Development, why this matter no longer forms part of the Department's ministerial portfolios, and whether ageing still forms part of the Department’s Inclusive Societies work.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Department for International Development's (DFID) Inclusive Societies department leads the Department's work on ageing. The Minister of State, Rory Stewart, has responsibility for Inclusive Societies department’s work.
Many DFID programmes reach and include older people, for example on health systems strengthening and eye care, or specific programmes for the poorest including supporting slum dwellers in Tanzania or supporting widows resulting from the Genocide in Rwanda.
Ageing also features in DFID country level poverty analyses as a key factor in understanding poverty. In addition to this DFID is taking a global leadership role to push for better quality and use of age disaggregated data to ensure that the Sustainable Development Goals leave no one behind. DFID hosted a series of high profile events on this subject in May and is working towards the publication of an action plan detailing next steps early in 2017.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential contribution of addressing childhood cancer to the third Sustainable Development Goal.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The third millennium development goal includes the intention to reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment by 2030: this includes all forms of cancer. Reporting will be based on data from country health information systems.
DFID’s health focus is to improve the provision of basic health services for the poorest by strengthening health systems, improving health worker capacity and increasing access to essential medicines and equipment. Increasing coverage, access and quality will strengthen health services to address all health problems including childhood cancer. DFID also supports some specific efforts to tackle childhood cancer, such as a project through World Child Cancer in Burma, which seeks to improve the diagnosis, treatment and care for children with cancer.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support humanitarian and human rights organisations that seek the ability to cross the border at Semalka between Iraqi Kurdistan and Northern Syria in order to provide humanitarian aid.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
DFID currently funds a number of NGO partners who use the Semalka border crossing to provide humanitarian aid –health, food, livelihoods, and protection programmes – to people in parts of northern Syria. In general, access across the border is negotiated by agencies themselves.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region to ensure that aid convoys are permitted and facilitated, and that humanitarian workers, journalists, and staff of relief and aid organisations are permitted entry into the region of Northern Syria and Rojava.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The UK has raised the issue with the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Presidential Office, and strongly encouraged the free movement of humanitarian aid. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and to do all we can to ensure the provision of humanitarian access.