§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what assessment he has made of the current food shortages in(a) Tanzania and (b) the Singida region of Tanzania. [116699]
§ Hilary BennThe Government of Tanzania carried out an initial food crop assessment in May. Plans are also under way for the Food Security and Information Team (a joint donor, NGO and government working group) to undertake an assessment in July to identify particular areas of vulnerability. These assessments are normally conducted on a countrywide basis. DFID is ready to consider any request which the Government of Tanzania may make as a result of these assessments.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development how much aid the Department is giving to Tanzania to deal with the current food shortages. [116700]
§ Hilary BennDuring 2003–04 DFID will provide £80,000,000 to Tanzania to support the Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS). Agriculture and food security is a priority sector in the PRS and therefore a proportion of our support is used by the Government of Tanzania to address issues of vulnerability and food insecurity throughout the country. The Government of Tanzania is currently undertaking assessments of food shortages. DFID is ready to consider any request which the Government may make as a result of these assessments.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development whether there have been early warning system forecasts on the food shortages in Tanzania. [116701]
§ Hilary BennIt was anticipated that the exceptionally low rainfall so far this year could potentially threaten food security in Tanzania. This led the government of Tanzania to carry out an initial food and crop survey in May. A further assessment is anticipated in July to identify particularly vulnerable areas following the June harvest.