§ Mr. HepburnTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of overseas aid is spent on(a) basic health care and (b) education. [76680]
§ Clare ShortThe information required on the proportion of the UK's bilateral aid programme allocable by sector in 2001–02 is:
- Education: 13 per cent.
- Basic health care: 12 per cent.
These figures represent expenditure on projects and programmes specific to these sectors but do not capture the full extent of our efforts in each policy area because they exclude multisector projects and programmes, strategic funding to civil society organisations and budget support and balance of payments. Also excluded are activities funded through multilateral channels.
§ John BarrettTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what efforts are being made to improve the quality of data collection in the measurement of aid effectiveness. [76764]
§ Clare ShortThe Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) provide an internationally agreed framework for assessing the overall effectiveness of the development effort. A working set of 48 indicators has been agreed against which to measure progress. These provide a baseline for the international community to help ensure an adequate set of internationally available indicators that the UN will use to report global progress annually.
Within individual countries DFID and other donors are committed to using Government performance indicators and data whenever possible to monitor progress. This minimises additional demands for information on developing countries, and allows us to strengthen country statistical systems at the same time as improving data for measuring our own effectiveness.
Most of the world's poorest countries are developing Poverty Reduction Strategies (PRSs) which set out how their Governments will address poverty. These PRSs must set out a monitoring framework which specifies the indicators which the Government and donors will use to assess progress. These frameworks have focussed attention on the poor quality and availability of existing data, and have encouraged increased and better co-ordinated Government and donor support to build capacity to collect the information required. DFID is currently supporting the PRS monitoring process in several countries, including Uganda, Malawi, Pakistan and Ghana, both directly and by helping to build general statistical capacity to underpin the PRS framework. Other bilateral donors are supporting efforts here and elsewhere. Strengthening country data systems also improves the availability and quality of the 562W data required for global MDG monitoring. DFID is currently working with the UN and the World bank to improve the systems for collecting the required data from countries and disseminating these internationally.
In addition, there are several multilateral initiatives which aim to improve the quality of data available within partner countries. The IMF's General Data Dissemination System Project—partly funded by DFID—supports African countries in drawing up and implementing plans for improving their statistical systems. The World bank is currently considering ways of improving its capacity for results-based management, including new ways of increasing the funding available for statistical capacity building. The EC is in the process of drawing up guidelines for good practice in donor reporting and monitoring and working to encourage greater harmonisation among donors.
§ John BarrettTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the projects in which her Department has undertaken joint evaluations of aid effectiveness with other major donors over the last 12 months. [76765]
§ Clare ShortDuring the last 2 months DFID's Evaluation Department has participated in the following joint studies:
All of the above studies are ongoing.
- Evaluating Comprehensive Development Framework (of pilot country performance)
- Evaluation of Basic Education
- European Union "Triple C"—coherence, complementarity, co-ordination
- Evaluation of United Nations Family Planning Agency
- Decentralisation and local government
- Peace building and conflict reduction
- Social sector impact (focused upon Education in Ghana)