Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding was provided to support the peace process in Burma in 2016-17; and which organisations were recipients of that funding.
Answered by Alistair Burt
In the financial year 2016-17 DFID contributed £4.2 million to the Peace Support Fund managed by the Nordic International Support Foundation. The Fund provides support to civil society, youth and women’s organisations working on peace.
The DFID Minister of State met representatives of the government and Burma’s ethnic groups during his visit to Burma in July 2017. The peace process was an important topic of discussion raised by the minister during his visit.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to address the shortfall in funding for internally displaced people in Shan State and Kachin State in Burma.
Answered by Alistair Burt
DFID has provided £25.8 million in humanitarian and health assistance to internally displaced and conflict-affected people in Kachin and Northern Shan States since 2012. The UK is one of the largest providers of assistance to the crisis in Kachin and northern Shan states. We will continue to respond to humanitarian need and will encourage other donors to play their part.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions she has had with her counterpart in Burma on the suicide rates of internally displaced people in camps in that country.
Answered by Rory Stewart
DFID discusses issues affecting internally displaced people (IDPs) in Burma with the Burmese authorities on a regular basis. The issue of suicides has not been raised with us as a concern in camps in Burma although we take the welfare of IDPs extremely seriously.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what estimate she has made of how much of the funding provided by her Department for projects in Burma is administered by companies which are owned by the Burmese Army.
Answered by Rory Stewart
DFID does not fund any organisations whose projects are administered by the Burmese Army or by military holding companies.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what proportion of her Department's allocated aid for Burma will be administered by the Department for International Trade (a) in this financial year and (b) in the next three financial years.
Answered by Rory Stewart
No DFID funding for Burma will be administered by the Department for Trade in this financial year and there are no current plans to do so.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department is providing funding or other support for the resettlement and new housing for internally displaced people in Kachin State, Burma.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
DFID has provided over £18 million in humanitarian and health assistance to conflict-affected people in Kachin and Northern Shan States since 2011, and expects to spend a further £4.9 million this year. We coordinate our assistance with other donors. Other donors have historically supported housing for displaced people. Currently our assessment is that conditions for large-scale return or voluntary resettlement are not present in the absence of a ceasefire and steps towards a peace agreement. We would expect to provide support to return and voluntary resettlement when the political situation permits.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department has given to New Alliance in respect of farming in Africa; and what criteria that organisation was assessed against to receive such support.
Answered by Nick Hurd
In 2012 the UK pledged to support the New Alliance commitment to inclusive agriculture growth. The UK contributes to projects in six founding member countries. These projects aim to improve incomes from agricultural production, and strengthen the food security and nutrition of poor smallholders farmers.
The UK also supports the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (managed by the World Bank) and other international agriculture research and policy initiatives.
All DFID funding undergoes thorough scrutiny and is linked to performance. This includes the value for money proposition and poverty impact. Each project is subject to annual reviews that are posted on the DFID Development Tracker website.