Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department provides to (a) the democratic process in Sudan and (b) help ensure participation in that process by opposition parties.

The UK has continually been very clear in its messaging about the importance of Sudan respecting democratic norms and permitting open political space. DFID will provide support for the democratic process through our governance and economic reform programme, which has been specifically designed to respond to opportunities as they arise in Sudan. This could take the form of providing support to a range of civilian and civil society organisations to support their participation in the transition process. We also engage with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Global Britain Fund, which has provided support to democracy in Sudan through projects seeking to reinforce democratic scrutiny of government decisions at the National Assembly, and some support to policy making for opposition political parties.