Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to measure and monitor the standard and quality of the jobs created by UK development assistance.

No country can eradicate poverty or transition from aid without inclusive economic growth that produces quality jobs. This is a defining development challenge for DFID’s partner countries and is at the heart of building global prosperity and stability that is in the UK’s national interest.

DFID’s 2017 Economic Development Strategy expressly commits us to deliver more and better jobs – seeking to improve job quality progressively and raise standards as countries develop. As developing countries generate better quality jobs, opportunities increase for UK trade and investment that further contribute to poverty reduction and mutual prosperity.

The Department is currently working to improve how it monitors and measures its jobs impact – including through partnerships with the World Bank and the Office of National Statistics to capture job quality and key elements of decent work.