§ Joan RuddockTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what new money his Department pledged to Afghanistan at the recent Donor Conference in Berlin. [166723]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe UK made a total pledge of £500 million over five years (2002–03 to 2006–07) at the international conference on Afghanistan in Berlin on 31 March-1 April 2004. That total includes funding for conflict prevention and counter-narcotics work to which the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) contributes, together with other Government departments, through the Global Conflict Prevention Pool and UK Counter-Narcotics strategy.
The Global Conflict Prevention: Pool (funded jointly by FCO, DFID and MOD) has a three-year strategy totalling £52 million from 2003–04 to 2005–06. £11 million was disbursed in 2003–04, leaving £41 million to be spent in 2004–6.
The FCO component of the three-year UK Counter-Narcotics strategy (2003–04 to 2005–06) totals £47.2 million. £12.7 million of this was disbursed in 2003–04, leaving £31.5 million to be committed in 2004–06.
The British Embassy in Kabul also has an FCO budget of £250,000 for local project work in 2004–05.