Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what reports she has received on the quality and quantity of aid (a) promised and (b) delivered to Nepal following the earthquakes of 25 April and 12 May 2015.

The UK Government alone has committed £33 million to the Earthquake response in Nepal. This is part of a wider global response to this disaster which currently stands at £371 million in pledged humanitarian support. Assistance from the UK Government will reach over 200,000 people with shelter; 80,000 with cash transfers in compliment to the Government of Nepal’s assistance; over 30,000 people with safe water, and improved hygiene and sanitation; 30,000 people with blankets, cooking sets, and other essential day-to-day household items; 15,000 women and girls with gender and protection initiatives; and over 3,000 people with rehabilitation services. We are also providing support to humanitarian logistics through aircraft and trucking, whilst ensuring information is central to the response through support to beneficiary feedback mechanisms and needs assessments.

DFID is working closely with trusted UN and NGO partners and experts in the humanitarian field to ensure that the supplies distributed are high quality. Emergency shelter supplies provided to our partners conform to international SPHERE and ISO standards for quality, and technical guidance from the Shelter Cluster also reflects these standards.