§ Mr. CollinsTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans she has to increase the provision of overseas aid to Egypt; and if she will make a statement. [48778]
§ Clare ShortWe have no plans to increase direct development assistance to Egypt. The country already receives high levels of assistance from the EC of which the UK contribution was £17.5 million in 1999. Our bilateral allocations to Egypt are £4 million and £3.5 million in 2002–03 and 2003–04 respectively. New commitments will be focused on improving the effectiveness of EC assistance.
§ Mr. CollinsTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much overseas aid has been provided by her Department to Egypt in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [48777]
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§ Clare ShortSince 1997 my Department has provided the following amounts of direct assistance to Egypt:
£000 1996–97 6,229 1997–98 7,246 1998–99 4,947 1999–2000 3,546 2000–01 2,661 We also provide significant indirect assistance via multilateral institutions in particular the EC. In 1999 our share of the EC programme was £17.5 million