David Anderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, in what ways Government aid to Ethiopia assisted in improving democracy and human rights in that country in 2015-16; and if she will make a statement.
Mr Nick Hurd
A stable, secure and prosperous Ethiopia is critical to millions of poor Ethiopians and the UK’s national interest. UK support to Ethiopia, since 2010, has, for example, helped reduce poverty and child mortality by a quarter. Despite Ethiopia’s remarkable progress against the Millennium Development Goals, we have concerns about their progress on civil and political rights. The UK’s aid relationship with any government is based on an assessment of commitment to our partnership principles, including to human rights and international obligations.
DFID has supported Ethiopian civil society organisations to respond to the development priorities of poor people and to hold Government to account. In 2015-16 we have developed the capacity of institutions central to upholding accountability including; the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, the Ethiopian Revenue and Customs Authority, the Office of the Federal Auditor General and the Federal Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission.
