Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans the Government has to support the rebuilding of Syria after the end of the conflict in that country.
Mr Desmond Swayne
The UK has been at the forefront of the international response to the humanitarian crisis in Syria. We have committed over £1.1 billion to date, making us the second largest bilateral donor to the international response.
The UK is now updating our planning to reflect the timeline envisaged in the Vienna political process and are asking others to do the same. The scale of the task will be enormous, complex and take a long time to complete. The UK’s response will therefore be part of a wider international effort.
The initial priorities will be to support stabilisation and transition including safety and security, reconciliation, transitional justice and confidence building measures. Meeting protection and basic needs will remain a priority, along with helping displaced persons to return. We will also look to build local governance structures in liberated areas. Over time the focus will shift to longer-term reconstruction, which includes the re-building of Syria’s shattered infrastructure, economy, services, and society. The expertise of the UN, International Financial Institutions and the private sector will be essential.
