Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how the £1.8 billion earmarked for economic development will be allocated this financial year.

The £1.8 billion earmarked for Economic Development will be allocated though the comprehensive system of project identification, development and approval used across DFID. This system makes best use of our business case process to ensure we support projects which provide best value for money whilst maximising results. We will also make full use of our new Growth Diagnostics tool to ensure that economic development spend is focused on those areas where it can have maximum impact.