Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much ODA spend on education projects for which there is data had girls' education as a (a) component and (b) principal aim in each of the last five years.

The UK has spent the following on bilateral education ODA in the last five years for which figures are available (2021 data is not yet available and will be published later in 2022 as part of the Statistics on International Development):

2020: £545 million

2019: £789 million

2018: £686 million

2017: £785 million

2016: £964 million

FCDO's education investments are focused on supporting access to quality schooling and improving learning outcomes for all children, especially girls. All education programmes are gender responsive and given the specific barriers that girls face, the vast majority of our programmes also involve targeted interventions to support girls and other marginalised groups. For example, our flagship £500 million Girls' Education Challenge programme and £70 million Girls' Education in South Sudan programme are focused primarily on girls' education.

In addition to our Education ODA, the UK funds many other programmes that support girls' education such as programmes to tackle violence against girls and child marriage, and support to sexual and reproductive health and rights.