§ Mr. SwayneTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement regarding(a) British and (b) EU aid to Papua New Guinea. [71484]
§ Clare ShortThe UK has a small programme of development assistance focusing on education in the Pacific region. But the majority of UK development assistance to Papua New Guinea is provided through support for regional initiatives, such as the Pacific Community and the South Pacific Forum, and through the EU. Britain also contributed £140,000 in response to the July 1998 tidal wave disaster.
During the period 1990–1995 Papua New Guinea received over 220 mecu under the first phase of the EC's Lome IV Convention. This is equivalent to about £180 million, of which the UK share was some £30 million. Under the second phase (1995–2000) the UK will have committed about £5 million to a programme worth 50 mecu (about £40 million) aimed at human resource and rural environment development.