Clause 8 - Arrangements with third parties
International Development Bill [Lords]
11:30 am
Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden, Conservative)
I beg to move amendment No. 10, in page 3, line 31, at end add—
`(3) The Secretary of State shall ensure that, taking one year with another, not less than 15 per cent. of development assistance given under section 1 is distributed through charities and other non-governmental organisations specialising in development.'.
This is another probing amendment, which would place on a more stable financial footing the Government's relationship with charities and non-governmental aid organisations specialising in development. It would ensure that development assistance provided through charities and non-governmental organisations could not fall below 15 per cent. of the total development assistance, and would help to build strong support for development and act as a check against over-centralising Government.
The percentage is stated merely as part of a probing amendment, but we strongly believe that it is important to create the right balance in terms of the work of NGOs. We are concerned about any drift away from working with NGOs towards providing more assistance directly to Governments of developing nations, because we often seem to lose accountability for money given in that way. Some bad examples of funds given to developing countries that have ended up in Swiss bank accounts have arisen out of the direct provision of aid to Governments. It is a simple fact of life that some Governments are corrupt.
The developed world has found it difficult to keep a handle on aid given directly to Governments. By comparison, giving money through NGOs, especially those based in this country, provides a good opportunity for accountability, analyses of the way in which money is spent and the capacity to check that it has been spent as NGOs say that it has.
NGOs have a good record of rolling out projects and keeping their administrative costs at a low level to ensure that nearly all the money is used in the project for which it was envisaged. We believe that, as a nation, we are blessed with especially strong NGOs that enjoy a good reputation abroad for being effective in global poverty reduction, which is the purpose of the Bill. Charities and NGOs are more than service providers, and they should be fully supported in the Bill. They are important partners for the Department, and we would like to see that fact recognised as part of the legislation.
Aid distributed by UK-based charities and NGOs amounted to £195 million in 2000. That is roughly 8 per cent. of the departmental budget. We would like their role in development to be boosted and their involvement increased. The figure of 15 per cent. is hypothetical, but by suggesting it we seek to express our desire for them to be more rather than less actively used by the Department. An increase in Government funding for charities would involve more people directly or indirectly in development programmes and projects, so support for development would increase.
Charities are successful in this country in raising money in appeals and giving clear evidence of the work that they undertake. That is popular with the public. To understand that popularity, we need only think of examples of big gift days such as Comic Relief day, when a great deal of publicity is given to the work that charities do in the developing world. We want to see the Government endorse that by a reference to the work of charities and NGOs in the Bill and, where possible, by allowing them to do an increasing amount of work.