§ James PurnellTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much in (a) overseas aid and (b) debt relief assistance has been spent per year on Bangladesh by the Government since 1997. [55475]
§ Clare ShortThe Bilateral Development Assistance and Debt Relief for Bangladesh since 1997 was:
£000 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 Bilateral development assistance 39,078 67,361 71,794 76,920 Of which was debt relief 559 443 292 0 In addition the UK contributes development assistance via multilateral organisations. The estimated contribution for Bangladesh is as follows:
Year £ million 1997 14.6 1998 41.8 1999 6.0 2000 37.7
§ James PurnellTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development how the Commonwealth debt528W initiative aided (a) Bangladesh and (b) other moderately-indebted countries; and what future plans the Government have to extend debt relief to Bangladesh. [55476]
§ Clare ShortThe Commonwealth debt initiative does not apply to Bangladesh. The initiative was launched in 1997 to cancel aid debts of poorer Commonwealth countries who are committed to international development targets. Bangladesh had already had its UK aid debts written off under retrospective terms adjustment prior to that date.
Aid debt worth about £50 million has been written off under the Commonwealth debt initiative for middle-income countries largely in the Caribbean.
There are no plans to extend debt relief to Bangladesh since Bangladesh's current external debt burden is sustainable. But Bangladesh received £773.88 million in aid, of which £68.28 million came from the UK in 2000 (the latest year for which figures are available).