§ Mr. Altonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance was given by Her Majesty's Government during the years 1978,1979,1980, 1981 and 1982 to 30 September for the purposes of relief for the Eritrean refugees in the Sudan; and through what channels.
§ Mr. Neil MartenIt is not possible to indicate the exact scale of Her Majesty's Government's assistance to Eritrean refugees during the period 1978 to September 1982 as it has generally been our practice to allocate funds through UNHCR for its refugee programme in Sudan rather than for any specific group of refugees.
Britain's response since 1978 has been as follows:
In 1978–79, £75,000 towards emergency relief programmes to help with an additional influx of Eritrean refugees.In 1980–81, £850,000:£552,000 through Euro Action Accord towards the Qala en Nahal agricultural project to resettle Eritrean and Ethiopian refugees; £16,000 to the Save the Children Fund; and £282,000 via UNHCR for its general programme.In 1981–82, £1,290,000:£1 million for UNHCR general programme; and £290,000 via Euro Action Accord for the continuation of the Qala en Nahal project.In 1982–83, £800,000:£490,000 to UNHCR to assist with a clinic in Port Sudan, a hospital at Yei in Southern Sudan and warehouses in Southern Sudan; and £310,000 through voluntary agencies for Euro Action Accord's Qala en Nahal project, Save the Children Fund's clinic in Gedaref and community-based activities run by the Ockenden Venture.Apart from bilateral assistance, the Government contribute to the European Community's efforts.