UK Government confirms that more than £3 billion has been given to Pakistan in overseas aid – far too little reaches Pakistan’s persecuted minorities. Ministers have promised to make sure Covid support reaches the most vulnerable, including minority communities.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL13947):
Question:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much Official Development Assistance has been provided to Pakistan in each of the past ten years; and what proportion of that funding was awarded to educational projects in each of those years. (HL13947)
Tabled on: 08 March 2021
Answer:
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon:
The UK Government has spent £3,068,877,909 on Official Development Assistance in Pakistan in the last 10 years. On average, 28% of this has been spent on educational projects.
Date and time of answer: 22 Mar 2021 at 16:48.
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Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL13948):
Question:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many doses of COVID-19 vaccines they intend to provide to the government of Pakistan; in providing any such vaccines, what account they will take of reports of inequalities affecting minority communities in that country; and what action the UK High Commissioner to Pakistan will take to ensure the fair operation of the COVAX initiative. (HL13948)
Tabled on: 08 March 2021
Answer:
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon:
The UK is supporting the equitable rollout of vaccines in Pakistan and around the world through COVAX, an international alliance co-led by the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and World Health Organization. We are one of the world’s largest donors to COVAX, contributing £548 million to date. Decisions about the global rollout of the vaccine are for COVAX, which is committed to prioritising distribution where it will have most impact. We understand that COVAX plans to provide around 90 million vaccine doses to Pakistan. The Government of Pakistan is finalising its vaccination roll out plan for refugees in close consultation with UNHCR and other stakeholders. We are in close contact with the Pakistani authorities to support this effort.
The UK is providing an additional £4.67 million through the World Health Organisation to support Pakistan’s COVID-19 Preparedness and Response plan. This will help provide medical assistance to the seriously ill, infection prevention and control, and increased testing capacity. We will continue to ensure that our programme of COVID-19 assistance to Pakistan helps those at risk and reaches the most vulnerable, including minority communities.
Date and time of answer: 22 Mar 2021 at 16:15.
