Lord St John of Bletso

The UK was one of the first to respond widespread food insecurity resulting from a poor 2015 harvest and the emerging El Niño. Since September 2015, we have been supporting over 350,000 people in the worst affected areas, through cash transfers, in a £15m programme ending in July 2016.

An estimated 2.8 million people currently face food insecurity in Zimbabwe, so the UK is also helping to build their longer term resilience to future droughts. Our programmes provide training to smallholder farmers strengthening their ability to cope with the effects of climate change; and supporting them to grow drought resistant crops - such as ground nuts, sesame and mung bean for sale to the market.

South Sudan is in the midst of a protracted humanitarian crisis affecting millions, and the UK is prioritising support which saves lives and protects the most vulnerable. The UK works with the UN and others on small infrastructure projects that support humanitarian efforts, such as the building/maintenance of roads, airstrips and camps; and projects that are driven by local communities, such as building of water points, dykes, bridges and schools. Peace and security, including the overdue formation of the transitional government of national unity, are essential for progress on the development of South Sudan. The UK is playing an active role in encouraging the full implementation of the peace agreement, and continues to call for the immediate return of Opposition leader Riek Machar to Juba in order to facilitate this.

The UK is deeply concerned by the deteriorating security situation in northern Mozambique, and the increasing attacks by groups with links to Islamic extremism. On 10 November, the Foreign Secretary and the Minister for Africa publicly condemned the recent attacks in which over 50 people were beheaded.

We are working with the Government of Mozambique to address the root drivers of conflict and instability in northern Mozambique, including through engagement with the Government of Mozambique's regional development authority in Cabo Delgado, and by providing targeted technical assistance under the framework of a Defence Memorandum of Understanding. To date, the UK has provided £14.5 million of support to internally-displaced people in northern Mozambique through the UN and its partners. We also regularly engage with our international partners, including the US, France, Portugal and South Africa, to discuss a shared approach to the situation in Cabo Delgado.

We are deeply concerned by the ongoing violence in South Sudan and agree with the United Nations Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide that the international community needs to act fast before genocide becomes a reality. Together with our regional and international partners, we continue to press both the government of South Sudan and the Opposition to show restraint and work to build peace through an inclusive political process. In parallel, as we have consistently made clear, we fully support a United Nations arms embargo on South Sudan and will continue to push for this in Security Council discussions in New York.