§ Norman LambTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the situation in Burkina Faso regarding the incidence of HIV cases; and what assistance has been provided by her Department in each of the last five years. [28621]
§ Clare ShortBurkina Faso has the second highest HIV/AIDS infection rate in west Africa, the UN estimating the adult prevalence rate as being 6.4 per cent. at the end of 1999. The Burkinabe Government are strongly committed to tackling HIV/AIDS through a comprehensive national486W strategy, and are working in partnership with neighbouring countries to contain the epidemic. Last month Burkina Faso hosted the 12th International Conference on AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases in Africa.
DFID does not have a substantive aid programme to Burkina Faso, and has not provided direct support for any projects linked to HIV/AIDS over the last five years. However, we fund such work indirectly through our contributions to international agencies—UNAIDS supports regional work to strengthen the response to HIV/AIDS throughout Africa, and the World bank's $500 million Multi-Country HIV/AIDS Program for the Africa Region (MAP) includes $22 million for Burkina Faso to help the Government expand access, particularly for vulnerable groups, to prevention, care and treatment.
§ Norman LambTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much development aid was provided to Burkina Faso by the UK in each of the last five years. [28620]
§ Clare ShortDFID does not have a development programme in Burkina Faso. Small-scale funding has been available from the small grants scheme and the civil society challenge fund (and its forerunner). Details of DFID grants in aid and in kind are as follows:
£ 1996–97 204,000 1997–98 156,000 1998–99 305,000 1999–2000 267,000 2000–01 234,000 In addition the UK provided debt relief of £430,000 in 1997–98.
The EC maintains a substantial development assistance programme to Burkina Faso. The calculated estimate of the proportion attributable to UK contributions over the years 1995–99 (the last year for which we have data) is as follows:
£million 1995 7.4 1996 4.5 1997 5.7 1998 7.0 1999 6.3