§ John BarrettTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what evidence has been collated by her Department on abuse of civilians by army personnel in the Cabinda enclave of Angola; and if she will make a statement. [91156]
§ Clare ShortAccess to Cabinda is difficult and the UK government has been unable to assess the situation on the ground. However as part of its emergency response mandate in Angola, the UN is planning an inter-agency mission to the region at the end of this month. This is likely to include UNICEF, the World Food Programme and one of the UN protection agencies, as well as the Government of Angola. We expect that the mission will address the issue of human rights.
§ John BarrettTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made in the distribution of food aid to inaccessible areas of Angola. [91165]
§ Clare ShortThe UN has been able to provide food aid to an additional 1 million vulnerable Angolans since the ceasefire agreement last April. However, humanitarian agencies are still unable to reach many parts of the country because of mine infestation and poor road infrastructure. The World Food Programme (WFP) is to conduct airdrops of food aid to Angolans in inaccessible areas.
Serious mine accidents have closed a number of roads. Re-opening them is a UN priority and the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs has contributed US $460,000 from the Emergency Response Fund (ERF) to clear the mines from some of the main transport arteries used to deliver emergency supplies. My Department has allocated £500,000 to the ERF and a further £300,000 to UNDP for a project aimed at 19W improving the effectiveness of mine action through strengthened co-ordination at the provincial level. The United Kingdom also contributed 19.7 per cent. of the 6 million euros which the EC has made available for mine action in Angola. This included 5 million euros to a variety of mine clearance agencies.
A $6.9 million WFP Angola Special Operation (SO 10149.1) was recently approved to improve access to vulnerable populations and to reduce the cost of delivering humanitarian assistance. In addition to the £2 million my Department has contributed to WFP food aid in Angola, a further £750,000 has been provide for this special operation to enable WFP to lease all terrain trucks to deliver food aid. The first trucks have arrived in Mavinga where they are being used to deliver food to 70,000 Angolans in the two gathering areas outside the town.