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To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether his Department estimates that Tanzania will achieve the millennium development goals.

Asked by

Julia Drown (Labour)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

19 November 2003

Reference

138905; 413 c946-7W;413 c947W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress has been made against the target of reducing the number of child deaths under the fourth millennium development goal; and what assessment his Department has made of whether the target will be met. - Inc figures and ref to...

Asked by

Julia Drown (Labour)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

12 November 2003

For answer on

19 November 2003

Answered on

19 November 2003

Ms Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made against the target of reducing the number of child deaths under the fourth millennium development goal; and what assessment his Department has made of whether the target will be met. [138904] Hilary Benn: Globally child mortality is declining, and between 1990 and 2000 the under-five mortality rate was reduced from 92 to 82 deaths per 1,000 live births. On current trends, however, the Millennium Development Goal target of reducing under-five mortality by two- thirds between 1990 and 2015 will not be met. DFID works with international partners to monitor global trends in progress towards the Millennium Development Goals and their associated targets. Latest United Nations reports suggest considerable regional variation in the rates of progress being made towards the under-five mortality target. Latin America is expected to meet the target, but there has been much slower progress in South Asia, and virtually no progress in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounts for over half of all under-five deaths. DFID has put the achievement of the MDGs at the heart of its work, and is working with its partners to accelerate progress towards the MDG targets. The targets for both child and maternal mortality in Africa and Asia form part of DFID's Public Service Agreement. Supporting progress in sub- Saharan Africa is a particular priority for DFID. An assessment of progress towards all of the MDGs is provided in the UN Secretary General's 2003 report on the implementation of the Millennium Declaration: http://ods-dds- nv.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N03/481/ 57/PDF/N0348157. pdf?OpenElement.

Date

19 November 2003

Reference

138904; 413 c942-3W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will list his estimated expenditure on pursuit of the millennium development goals in (a) 2001-02, (b) 2002-03, (c) 2003-04, (d) 2004-05 and (e) 2005-06. - Inc table.

Asked by

John Bercow (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

14 November 2003

For answer on

19 November 2003

Answered on

19 November 2003

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list his estimated expenditure on pursuit of the millennium development goals in (a) 2001-02, (b) 2002-03, (c) 2003-04, (d) 2004-05 and (e) 2005-06. [139620] Hilary Benn: DFID's aim is to eliminate poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals. With the exception of funds voted to DFID to fulfil its legal commitments to provide pensions to former expatriate colonial civil and public servants, we use all of our resources for eliminating poverty in poorer countries and for preventing and reducing conflict. The information in the table updates the figures published in DFID's Annual Report 2003, where a further breakdown is available: DFID Resource Budget £ million _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Eliminating poverty in poorer Overseas superannuation Total resource budget countries 2001-02 outturn 3,174 59 3,233 2002-03 outturn 3,614 56 3,671 2003-04 plans 3,756 60 3,816 2004-05 plans 3,780 57 3,837 2005-06 plans 4,533 54 4,587 _________________________________________________________________________________________________.

Date

19 November 2003

Reference

413 c947W; 139620

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will list the performance targets that (a) his Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies are required to meet; and if he will specify for each target (i) who sets it and (ii) who monitors achievement against...

Asked by

Lord Flight (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

13 November 2003

Reference

413 c444-5W; 137963

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the total cost was of (a) setting, (b) monitoring and (c) measuring the performance targets for his Department in 2002-03; and how many and what grades of civil servants monitor these targets. - Including no figures.

Asked by

Lord Flight (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

13 November 2003

Reference

137947; 413 c444W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment his Department has made of progress towards the Millennium Development Goal to halve the proportion of people in the world without safe access to water and sanitation by 2015; and what additional funds will be made available to water...

Asked by

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

4 November 2003

For answer on

12 November 2003

Answered on

12 November 2003

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of progress towards the Millennium Development Goal to halve the proportion of people in the world without safe access to water and sanitation by 2015; and what additional funds will be made available to water and sanitation projects to reach the Millennium Development Goal. [137175] Hilary Benn: The Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment 2000, produced by the World Health Organisation (WHO)/United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)) Joint Monitoring Programme, provides baseline figures on progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Among the main findings are: (a) The percentage of people served with some form of improved water supply rose from 79 per cent. in 1990 to 82 per cent. in 2000. Over the same period the proportion of the world's population with access to sanitation facilities increased from 55 per cent. to 60 per cent.; (b) At the beginning of 2000 one-sixth (1.1 billion people) of the world's population was without access to improved water supply and two fifths (2.4 billion people) lacked access to improved sanitation The majority of these people lived in Asia and Africa; (c) Although an enormous number of people gained access to services between 1990 and 2000, with approximately 816 million additional people gaining access to water supplies and 747 million people gaining access to sanitation facilities, the percentage increases appear modest because of global population growth during that time; (d) The water supply and sanitation sector will face enormous challenges over the coming decades. The assessment estimates that, to achieve the 2015 target in Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean alone, an additional 2.2 billion people will need access to sanitation and 1.5 billion will need access to water supply by that date. The Joint Monitoring Programme is continuing. DFID has provided substantial financial support and technical assistance to this initiative from the outset. The Government remains firmly committed to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDG targets for water and sanitation are central to DFID's approach to poverty reduction and sustainable development and they remain important priorities for DFID. We are working actively with partner country governments to support production of their own agendas for development, known as Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers, and toensure that water and sanitation are adequately represented in them. The Global Assessment 2000 can be accessed on: http://www.who.int/docstore/water sanitation health/ Globassessment/GlobalTOC.htm

Date

12 November 2003

Reference

137175; 413 c316W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress has been made in meeting the Millennium Development Goal targets for reducing (a) child and (b) maternal mortality. - Inc figure and ref to http://ods-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N03/481/57/PDF/N03481 57.pdf?OpenElement.

Asked by

Harold Best (Labour)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

5 November 2003

For answer on

10 November 2003

Answered on

10 November 2003

Mr. Best: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made in meeting the Millennium Development Goal targets for reducing (a) child and (b) maternal mortality. [137657] Hilary Benn: Assuming progress continues at the same rate as over the 1990s, the Millennium Development Goals 2015 targets of reductions in child and maternal mortality will not be met. Child mortality is declining but on current trends will have fallen by only one quarter by 2015, far short of the two thirds reduction aimed for. There is considerable regional variation. Latin America is expected to meet the target but there has been much slower progress in south Asia and the Arab states, and virtually no progress in sub-Saharan Africa. Maternal mortality is difficult to measure but the available data suggest that little progress has been made in reducing mortality in recent years, and show an increase in maternal mortality in parts of Africa. In developing countries the coverage of the proxy indicator, the proportion of women who give birth with the assistance of a skilled health worker, increased from 42 per cent. in 1990 to 52 per cent. by 2000. Coverage in east and south east Asia, and northern Africa rose significantly. Coverage is highest in Latin America, at 85 per cent. In contrast, there was little progress in sub- Saharan Africa. DFID has put the achievement of the MDGs at the heart of its work, and is working with its partners to do all it can to meet these targets. The MDG targets for child and maternal mortality in Africa and Asia form part of DFIDs Public Service Agreement. Supporting progress in sub-Saharan Africa is a particular priority for DFID. A more comprehensive assessment of progress towards the goals is provided in the UN Secretary General's 2003 report on the implementation of the Millennium Declaration: http://ods-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/ GEN/N03/481/57/PDF/N0348157. pdf?OpenElement.

Date

10 November 2003

Reference

137657; 413 c56-7W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the extent to which his Department's support for fossil fuel investment is consistent with (i) the UK's obligations under the Kyoto Protocol and (ii) the Government's target to reduce the...

Asked by

Mike Hancock (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

20 October 2003

Reference

132457; 411 c361-2W;411 c365-6W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, how much the Department for International Development spent in each year since 2001 on the (a) Performance Reporting Information System for Management, (b) Multilateral Organisations' Performance Assessment Initiative and (c) Performance Assessment Network; if she will list the titles of...

Asked by

Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

7 July 2003

Reference

122568; 408 c582W;408 c580W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, in what percentage of (a) high risk, (b) medium risk and (c) low risk projects, the value for money indicator found the Department to have been successful; and if he will make a statement. - Inc table.

Asked by

Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

2 July 2003

Reference

122710; 408 c300-1W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, how the Department for International Development assesses whether general targets under the Joint Funding Scheme have been met.

Asked by

Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

1 July 2003

Reference

122567; 408 c223W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, if he will list the targets the Department for International Development set for the (a) Performance Assessment Network, (b) Performance Reporting Information System for Management and (c) Multilateral Organisations' Performance Assessment Initiative in (i) 2000-01, (ii) 2001-02 and (iii) 2002-03;...

Asked by

Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

1 July 2003

Reference

122566; 408 c223W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, if he will list the targets the Department for International Development set for (a) non-departmental public bodies, (b) non-governmental organisations, (c) consular offices, (d) research bodies and (e) agencies in (i) 2000-01, (ii) 2001-02 and (iii) 2002-03; and if he...

Asked by

Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

25 June 2003

For answer on

30 June 2003

Answered on

30 June 2003

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development if he will list the targets the Department for International Development set for (a) non-departmental public bodies, (b) non- governmental organisations, (c) consular offices, (d) research bodies and (e) agencies in (i) 2000-01, (ii) 2001-02 and (iii) 2002-03; and if he will make a statement. [122565] Hilary Benn: DFID has not set any formal targets for non-governmental organisations, research bodies, non- departmental public bodies or agencies in the years mentioned. Consular offices are the responsibly of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. However, when we work with or fund any such organisations we agree the outcomes we expect them to deliver and assess their performance accordingly. We have entered into a number of formal Partnership Programme Agreements with non-governmental organisations, for example. These are based on agreed outcomes which contribute to DFID's overall objectives. In our 2001-04 Public Service Agreement we set a target for CDC (of which the Secretary of State for International Development is the sole shareholder). This required CDC to make at least 70 per cent. of its new investments in poor developing countries and 50 per cent. of its new investments in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia. Alongside this target, DFID established in 1999 an Investment Policy to which CDC Group plc must work. This involves using its capital so as to maximize the creation and long-term growth of viable businesses in poorer developing countries through responsible investment and by mobilising private finance.

Date

30 June 2003

Reference

122565; 408 c25-6W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, what percentage of the Department's projects were in countries which were (a) found to have achieved sustainability, (b) found to be too early to judge sustainability, (c) found to have doubts as to their sustainability and (d) were not assessed...

Asked by

Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

17 June 2003

For answer on

25 June 2003

Answered on

25 June 2003

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what percentage of the Department's projects were in countries which were (a) found to have achieved sustainability, (b) found to be too early to judge sustainability, (c) found to have doubts as to their sustainability and (d) were not assessed for sustainability in each year since 2000. [120483] Hilary Benn: DFID does not make judgments about the sustainability of our partner countries. All our projects are designed to be sustainable so that they will continue to deliver benefits in the long term. DFID's projects under implementation above a certain threshold (£1 million from April 2002) are assessed annually through DFID's Performance Reporting Information System for Management (PRISM). To give us a more accurate picture of performance, we break our projects down according to a risk assessment. It is not possible to produce reliable, comparable data on project success for each year since 2000. Figures since April 2002 are as follows: _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Financial year 2001-02 Percentage High risk projects judged likely to be successful 24 Medium risk projects judged likely to be successful 56 Low risk projects judged likely to be successful 81 _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Source: Performance Reporting Information System for Management (PRISM). _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Financial year 2002-03 Percentage High risk projects judged likely to be successful 33 Medium risk projects judged likely to be successful 52 Low risk projects judged likely to be successful 84 _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Source: Performance Reporting Information System for Management (PRISM). Each project is given a score ranging from one to five, based on the likelihood of their achieving their intended objectives. For the purposes of this exercise, we judge projects receiving a score of one or two to be successful. Projects receiving a lower score may have achieved some of their objectives and so brought some sustainable development benefits. We have a target in our 2003-06 Public Service Agreement to improve the performance of our projects in each risk category.

Date

25 June 2003

Reference

120483; 407 c808W;407 c812W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State for International Development, which United Kingdom commitments arising from the World Summit on Sutainable Development (a) have been incorporated into the department's existing delivery plan for Service Delivery Agreements and (b) will be incorporated in its delivery plan for Service Delivery Agreements in advance...

Asked by

Lord Horam (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

11 June 2003

Reference

113874; 406 c866W;406 c868W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, what targets the Department has for improving energy efficiency; and how he intends to achieve these targets.

Asked by

Roger Williams (Liberal Democrat)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

9 June 2003

Reference

116653; 406 c612W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State for International Development, what the target is for efficiency savings in 2003-04 expressed (a) in money terms and (b) as a percentage of the Department's expenditure limit. - Inc figures.

Asked by

John Bercow (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

3 June 2003

Reference

114109; 406 c268W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development, what steps the Department has taken to publicise its Public Service Agreement targets; and at what cost to public funds. - Includes figure.

Asked by

John Bercow (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

3 June 2003

Reference

114459; 406 c279-80W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State for International Development, what support the Government is giving (a) bilaterally and (b) through (i) World Bank and (ii) UN agencies, to initiatives to assist African countries to overcome non-tariff barriers to trade by meeting G8 product standards and engaging in international standard setting;...

Asked by

Hugh Bayley (Labour)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

12 May 2003

For answer on

21 May 2003

Answered on

21 May 2003

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister of State for International Development what support the Government are giving (a) bilaterally and (b) through (i) World bank and (ii) UN agencies, to initiatives to assist African countries to overcome non-tariff barriers to trade by meeting G8 product standards and engaging in international standard setting; and if she will make a statement on G8 members' actions to improve the availability of information on standards and transparency to trade Ministers in developing countries. [113649] Hilary Benn: The Department for International Development (DFID) has undertaken a considerable amount of work in the important area of assisting developing countries, including in Africa, in the areas of standard setting and compliance. Bilateral trade related technical assistance projects in Malawi and Ghana have both provided support to the Standards Bureaus in those countries, to enable them to participate in international standard setting and implement the standards set by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation's Codex Alimentarius Committee. The new Regional Trade Facilitation project in southern Africa, covering the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, also has a component to support implementation of international standards that SADC members have signed up to. Through its funding of the Trade Policy Development Project of the World bank, DFID has supported the creation of the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF), which has already undertaken exploratory work in Africa and will be developing projects to enable African countries to meet standards for agricultural exports. The STDF is a partnership of the World bank, World Trade Organisation, the Food and Agriculture Organisation and World Health Organisation, which attempts to strengthen donor coordination in standards related to food safety, and plant and animal health. Between November 1999 and February 2003, reports and action plans were developed in Nigeria, South Africa, Mozambique, Kenya and Uganda, examining the link between trade facilitation, standards and trade. DFID is also contributing to a new United Nations Industrial Development Organisation Trust Fund, `Enabling Developing Countries to Participate in International Trade',which includes African countries in its first wave of projects. The Fund aims to: enhance developing country market accesses through appropriate infrastructure in order to meet and show compliance with export requirements; build capacity in potentially high productivity sectors; and provide support to developing countries that have encountered problems with meeting standards requirements for their exports. The G8 will be reporting on their actions to implement the commitments in the Africa Action Plan, including in the area of standards, at the G8 summit in Evian in June 2003. However, the European Commission has already announced the establishment of a `Help desk' within DG Trade, intended to facilitate developing country exports to the European Union through providing information on the requirements of the European Union market, including product standards. This helpdesk will be accessible through internet or by phone and Commission and member states delegations in countries with poor telecommunications.

Date

21 May 2003

Reference

113649; 405 c805-6W

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Minister of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the destruction by Israeli military forces of Well No C67 in Beit Hanoun, Gaza, on 26th April, and the impact of the destruction of the well on the availability and quality of water supplies to...

Asked by

Richard Burden (Labour)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

12 May 2003

For answer on

19 May 2003

Answered on

19 May 2003

Richard Burden: To ask the Minister of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the destruction by Israeli military forces of Well No C67 in Beit Hanoun, Gaza, on 26 April, and the impact of the destruction of the well on the availability and quality of water supplies to the local Palestinian population; and what representations she is making to the Israeli Government on the matter. [113595] Hilary Benn: I do not have details of the particular water source in question. It is nevertheless clear that destruction of infrastructure as a result of Israeli Military activity in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is adversely affecting public services, including water and wastewater. In addition, closures and curfews imposed by the Government of Israel mean that Palestinian maintenance crews are unable to conduct necessary routine maintenance, and water tankers are unable to service Palestinian communities without networks. This has left many Palestinians without access to reliable water supplies for extended periods of time and is leading to concerns about public health in affected areas. We are working closely with the Palestinian Water Authority to support their activities to supply water to all sections of the population. We continue, both bilaterally and through the EU, to make representations at the highest level to the Government of Israel about damage to Palestinian infrastructure caused by Israeli military activity. We are also working closely with colleagues in the region, and across Whitehall, to encourage the Israeli government to ease closures and curfews.

Date

19 May 2003

Reference

113595; 405 c523W;405 c521W

House

House of Commons

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