HC Deb 11 December 1987 vol 124 cc312-3W
Mr. Wilkinson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will list the numbers of British service personnel seconded to Zimbabwe and Mozambique, respectively, for training purposes in each of the past five years to date; and what number are expected to serve in each of these two countries in 1988.

Mr. Freeman

The total number of British service personnel seconded to Zimbabwe for training purposes in each of the past five years is as follows:

Number
1983 102
1984 58
1985 59
1986 62
1987 48

The number expected to serve in Zimbabwe in 1988 is 45.

No British service personnel have been seconded to Mozambique for training purposes over the past five years, and no such secondments are planned for the future. However, at the request of the Government of Mozambique, and with the agreement of the Zimbabwean Government, the British military advisory and training team in Zimbabwe is providing a limited programme of training to members of the Mozambican army.

Mr. Wilkinson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the current annual costs of the British military training missions in Zimbabwe and Mozambique, respectively; from what sources they are met; and what are the projections of costs and funding for these missions in 1988.

Mr. Freeman

There is no British military training mission in Mozambique. The total cost of the British military advisory and training team in Zimbabwe was about £3.3 million in 1987–88, and is expected to be about £3.6 million in 1988–89. The bulk of these costs are met by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's United Kingdom military training assistance scheme, although an element of support costs is provided by the Government of Zimbabwe.