Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress has been made on achieving the 17 sustainable development goals; and what steps her Department is taking to (a) support and (b) collaborate with the nations who have signed up to those goals.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
The UN is responsible for monitoring global progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and in its 2017 SDGs Report noted that “implementation has begun, but … the rate of progress in many areas is far slower than needed to meet the targets by 2030.”
The Department for International Development has put the Goals at the heart of all of its work and is working with a range of organisations and countries to help deliver them at the global, country and sectoral level. For example, DFID is leading the final global push to eradicate polio and help immunise 45 million children against the disease each year until 2020 to help achieve Goal 3 (Healthy Lives).
DFID is also providing a range of support to National Statistics Offices in developing countries to gather, analyse and use data, linked to the SDGs. For example, through the UN Statistics Department, DFID is supporting 20 developing countries to disseminate SDG data through National Reporting Platforms.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department has assessed the potential merits of increasing the proportion of its overseas development aid dedicated to water, sanitation and hygiene.
Answered by Lord Wharton of Yarm
The UK Government has committed to help 60 million people to gain access to water and sanitation by 2020. The focus will be to deliver results with best value for money, rather than pre-set budget allocations.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department plans to take to support developing countries in generating more renewable energy.
Answered by Lord Wharton of Yarm
The UK Government has an ambitious agenda to increase renewable energy generation in developing countries, through better government planning and catalysing more public and private sector investment into renewable energy – including through CDC.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what representations she has made to non-governmental organisations which receive funding from her Department on senior management salaries in those organisations.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
The National Council for Voluntary Organisations, backed by the Charity Commission, has encouraged more transparency on pay issues and introduced new pay guidelines. DFID Ministers have consistently demanded that NGOs are transparent and open with donors and the public.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department is giving to strengthening water, sanitation and hygiene services in countries affected by Ebola.
Answered by Nick Hurd
Prior to, during and following the Ebola outbreak, DFID has provided funding and technical assistance to increase access to water, sanitation services and hygiene education (WASH) in Sierra Leone and Liberia. Between 2012-2016, DFID has committed through our country programmes up to £71.3m for WASH programmes in Sierra Leone and £4.75m for Liberia. We have no bilateral programme in Guinea.
During the Ebola outbreak our existing WASH programmes were adapted to help Sierra Leone and Liberia respond to the crisis. The above figure includes DFID assistance to improve water and sanitation facilities in schools and health facilities as part of our support to the post-Ebola recovery.
The President of Sierra Leone has identified water as one of his top six priorities for the post Ebola recovery period. DFID has committed to support delivery of this agenda and we are working with them to define high quality programmes that will increase access to clean water.