§ Mr. Tom ClarkeTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what funds are made available by the ODA specifically to assist the physically and mentally handicapped.
§ Mrs. ChalkerFunds specifically to assist physically and mentally handicapped people are made available from our geographical programmes, through our joint funding scheme—JFS—with British charities and through international aid agencies. Examples of our geographical activities are
—In India we have supported Indian Spastic Societies in Bombay, Delhi and Calcutta since 1979. We currently have under consideration a programme of further support to these societies, plus another in Madras at a cost of around £1.6 million.—In Fiji we are spending £40,000 on a project with the Disabled Peoples' Association.—In Malawi we are sponsoring 15 ophthalmic technicians from the region to be trained and equipped to return to their countries to work as peripatetic operators. The cost of this project is £73,000.In the financial year 1989–90 over £651,000 was provided under the JFS for projects specifically intended to benefit disabled people. International agencies supported by the ODA which undertake projects to promote the welfare of disabled people include the WHO, UNCHR and UNIDO.