Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to support people who have been displaced during the war in Sudan.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is monitoring the situation in Sudan closely, including the humanitarian and security impacts within Darfur and Sudan's neighbouring countries. We are working to ensure regional borders remain open and those displaced receive humanitarian assistance. In May, the Minister for Development and Africa announced that the UK would provide £21.7 million in humanitarian aid for people in need in Sudan. This followed an earlier announcement of £5 million to help meet the urgent needs of refugees and returnees in South Sudan and Chad. We reaffirmed this at the Sudan pledging event on 19 June. We continue to call on both sides of the conflict to abide by their responsibilities under International Law, protect civilians and to grant immediate and unimpeded humanitarian access, so that aid can be provided to those who have been displaced.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle (a) malaria outbreaks and (b) other health crises in (i) Sudan and (ii) South Sudan.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
In Sudan, the UK continues to provide support to the health sector through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Sudan Humanitarian Fund (SHF). The UK is a top donor to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, pledging £1 billion to the Global Fund over the next three years. This Fund treated 4.2 million cases of malaria in Sudan and South Sudan in 2022. To effectively tackle disease outbreaks in South Sudan, the FCDO works closely with the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team who aid investigations and coordinate information flow between the South Sudanese ministries of Health, World Health Organization and in-country partners. The UK's Health Pooled Fund, co-funded by with other partners, has treated 1.6 million children in South Sudan for common childhood diseases and vaccinated over 288,000 children.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to support (a) the restoration of essential health services in the conflict zones of Sudan and (b) South Sudan to provide health services for refugees.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
In Sudan, the UK continues to provide support to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Sudan Humanitarian Fund (SHF). In this calendar year, we have provided £3.5 million to ICRC, to support their 2023 appeal, which includes support to health facilities. In South Sudan, the UK has been a leading donor to the health sector for more than ten years, spending over £280 million. Our Health Pooled Fund programme, co-funded by partners, seeks to deliver improved health and wellbeing for the population of South Sudan. This programme supports 512 public health facilities across seven of South Sudan's ten states and around 4,000 community health workers to deliver essential health services.
Asked by: Deidre Brock (Scottish National Party - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic discussions he has had with his counterparts in (a) African Union, (b) United Nations and (c) other countries on reaching a sustained ceasefire in Sudan.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is working with a range of partners, including Quad (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, US, UK), African and European countries, as well as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the African Union and the United Nations, to bring warring parties together and secure a permanent ceasefire. As a member of the African Union-convened Core Group on Sudan, the UK is working with regional and international partners to end hostilities and secure a peace process. UK Ministers attended the UN General Assembly in September, hosting a Ministerial-level Quad meeting reaffirming our shared interests in resolving the Sudan conflict. Ministers also raised Sudan in bilateral meetings with Egypt and South Sudan, paying tribute to their generosity in accepting refugees and calling for urgent action and the coordination of regional initiatives. UK leadership with 'Sudan Core Group' partners at the UN Human Rights Council led to a robust resolution on Sudan being passed. This resolution establishes an independent, international, Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) for Sudan so that those responsible can be held to account and to deter perpetrators from further crime.
Asked by: Lyn Brown (Labour - West Ham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what bilateral meetings at which Sudan will be discussed each Minister has planned for the UN General Assembly 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
UK ministers attended the UN General Assembly in September, using every opportunity to condemn the atrocities taking place in Darfur. Ministers raised Sudan in bilateral meetings with international and regional partners and States, including with Egypt and South Sudan, to pay tribute to Sudan's neighbouring countries for their generosity in accepting refugees and making consistent calls for urgent action and coordination of regional initiatives. The UK brought together Quad members (Saudi Arabia, UAE, UK, US) to reaffirm our shared interest in resolving the Sudan conflict. At a humanitarian event dedicated to Sudan, UK ministers addressed the worsening humanitarian crisis, taking the opportunity to publicly condemn the unconscionable attacks against humanitarian workers and to call for the urgent lifting of bureaucratic impediments, including delays in issuing visas, travel permits and clearances to aid workers.
Asked by: Earl of Sandwich (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to support or promote the church's peace and reconciliation efforts in South Sudan following the ecumenical visit with Pope Francis in February.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK endorses the messages of the Pope, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Moderator of the Church of Scotland during their historic visit to Juba in February 2023. The Government of South Sudan (GoSS) must stop violence, end corruption, and deliver justice and services for their people. The Minister of State for Development and Africa [Andrew Mitchell] met with the Archbishop of Canterbury in April 2023 to discuss the Church's role in promoting peace and tackling poverty in South Sudan. On Friday 22 September, I met with the Archbishop of Canterbury, alongside the Troika and guarantors of South Sudan's Peace Agreement. Despite a lack of political will from the GoSS, international and regional efforts for peace must be sustained - corruption needs to be tackled and civil society must be empowered.
Asked by: Earl of Sandwich (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to support civic education programmes delivered through non-governmental organisations and churches in South Sudan in the lead up to the 2024 elections in South Sudan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports free and fair elections as a critical component of South Sudan's 2018 Peace Agreement. We regularly engage with the Government of South Sudan on the importance of political and civic space, as well as media freedom, to ensure that the voices of the South Sudanese people are consistently heard, including those who hold opposing views. Previously, the UK has supported local civil society organisation Community Empowerment for Progress Organisation (CEPO) to monitor ceasefire violations at the local level, as well as the Association for Media and Development in South Sudan (AMDISS) and Female Journalists Network (FJN) to strengthen media freedom, counter misinformation and promote the inclusion of women in the provision of accurate and reliable journalism.
Asked by: Earl of Sandwich (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many times the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei in Sudan has intervened in recent conflict in Abyei; whether there is any obstacle to increasing the size of this force; and what is the UK’s contribution to the force.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government commends the efforts of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) to help maintain peace and security in Abyei under challenging circumstances. In March 2023, the UK Government sent a joint political delegation from British Embassy Juba and British Embassy Khartoum to Abyei to engage UNISFA's leadership following the transition to a multinational force and commend its efforts to tackle the security situation. We are aware of the increased presence in southern Abyei of the South Sudan People's Defence Forces and National Police, in violation of the 2011 peace agreement. The presence of forces is exacerbating tensions and hindering peace. We call upon the government of South Sudan to withdraw its forces without delay.
Asked by: Earl of Sandwich (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) reports that malnutrition is increasing in parts of South Sudan, and (2) the extent to which this is the result of returnees and others fleeing the war in the North; and what steps they intend to take in this regard.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The influx of refugees and returnees from Sudan is putting additional pressure on already scarce food resources in South Sudan. The UK Government have provided £2.25 million to meet the urgent needs of refugees and returnees in South Sudan who have fled the violence in Sudan - £1.5 million of this has been allocated to the World Food Programme for food provision in border areas. On 20 September, Minister Mitchell met South Sudanese President Salva Kiir to discuss efforts to secure peace in Sudan, implementation of South Sudan's Peace Agreement and the need for greater humanitarian assistance.
Asked by: Earl of Sandwich (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are providing to African universities and institutions specialising in conflict, in particular in (1) Sudan, (2) South Sudan, (3) Eritrea, and (4) Ethiopia.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Currently we do not provide support to universities in any of the specified countries. Through our recent Strategic Partnership for Higher Education, Innovation and Reform (SPHEIR) programme we have provided support to universities in Somaliland, Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Sierra Leone and provided conflict support to universities in Jordan and Lebanon supporting Syrian refugees. This programme ran from 2016-2022 and focussed on transforming the quality, relevance, scale, access and affordability of higher education systems through mutually beneficial partnerships. A successor programme is currently being developed which will be accepting/encouraging bids from Ethiopia and South Sudan.