Tag: Lord Boateng

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-02-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government on how many occasions in each of the last three years the Ambassador of Burundi to the UK has been (1) called to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to discuss events in Burundi, and (2) met a minister.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Mr Deo Sindayihebura became the first Burundian Ambassador to the UK in May 2014. Until then the position was based in Paris. The most recent meeting between the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge), and the Burundian Ambassador was on Wednesday 3 February.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers have regular contact with Ambassadors and High Commissioners during their normal diplomatic duties. We do not hold central records of all such meetings.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-02-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many full-time accredited diplomatic staff are employed in the British Embassy Liaison Office in Bujumbura; and of those, how many are not locally engaged, and what are their civil service grades.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Our Embassy Liaison Office in Bujumbura is a subordinate post, covered by our High Commission in Kigali. It has three full time locally engaged staff. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is seeking to appoint a full time accredited diplomatic officer to be based in Bujumbura. Our High Commissioner to Rwanda is accredited as the British Ambassador to Burundi while the Department for International Development Head of Office in Rwanda also covers Burundi. Full-time accredited diplomatic staff at our High Commission in Kigali and elsewhere in the region support political engagement with Burundian actors and visit Burundi regularly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-02-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of the level of representation facilitated by the British Embassy Liaison Office in Bujumbura in the light of recent events in Burundi; and what consideration they have given, if any, to the upgrading of its status to that of a full diplomatic post.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The current security situation in Burundi has made it difficult for our locally engaged staff to provide the level of political representation that they have done in the past. We have responded by increasing the frequency of visits by diplomatic staff, within the security constraints. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge), considered upgrading the level of diplomatic representation in December 2015, and he decided to recruit a full time Burundi coordinator based at our Embassy Liaison Office in Bujumbura. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is in the process of appointing this officer.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-02-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government on how many occasions in each of the last three years the Ambassador of the UK to Burundi (1) visited Bujumbura, and (2) met the President of Burundi.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

In 2014 our Ambassador visited Bujumbura on eight occasions and met with President Nkurunziza on three occasions.

In 2015 our Ambassador visited Bujumbura on seven occasions and met with President Nkurunziza on two occasions.

In 2016 our Ambassador has visited Bujumbura on one occasion so far.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-02-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the balance of trade between Burundi and the UK.

Lord Maude of Horsham

In 2015 the UK had a trade in goods surplus with Burundi of £1.7 million (Source: HM Revenue and Customs’ Overseas Trade Statistics database).

It is not possible to estimate the trade in services balance between the UK and Burundi as data on UK trade in services with Burundi are not published by the Office for National Statistics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-02-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the level of UK investment in Burundi and its contribution to gainful employment in that country.

Lord Maude of Horsham

There is no official data available on the level of UK investment in Burundi as data on UK trade with Burundi is not published by the Office for National Statistics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-03-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the role of investment through local revenue raising in the development of sustainable health systems capable of detecting and responding to disease outbreaks in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Baroness Verma

Domestic financing has a central role to play in all countries to strengthen health systems and improve accountability. In April 2001, African Union Heads of State agreed the Abuja Declaration which set a target of allocating at least 15% of budgets to improve the health sector. Subsequently, the share of budgets allocated to health increased from 8.1% in 2000 to 9.6% in 2010. However, even at 15% of government expenditure, many African countries would still lack the funding necessary to improve their health systems significantly. The international community therefore plays an important supporting role in strengthening health systems to contain disease outbreaks and to ensure global health security.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-03-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made, in the aftermath of the Ebola epidemic, of the case for the reform of World Health Organisation governance structures in order to strengthen the effectiveness of global responses to the outbreak of infectious diseases.

Baroness Verma

Following lessons learned from Ebola, Her Majesty’s Government (HMG) supports the recommendations from the independent Advisory Group to the World Health Organisation (WHO) Director General on Reform of WHO’s Work in Outbreaks and Health Emergencies. HMG welcomes the action that WHO Director General Chan has already taken in joining together WHO’s disease outbreaks and emergency response departments. We also welcome commitment by the WHO to implement one workforce, one budget, one set of rules and processes, and a clear line of authority which we assess will strengthen WHO’s governance structure and allow for an effective response to outbreak of infectious diseases. HMG has urged the WHO to implement the Advisory Group recommendations in full and without delay and we look forward to an update on progress with this at the World Health Assembly in May.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2015-11-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the likely impact of the outcomes of the Valletta Conference on Migration in reducing youth unemployment in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The Action Plan agreed at the Valletta Summit on 11/12 November set out a clear strategy for tackling irregular migration that focuses on the root causes as well as the consequences. The Plan highlighted in particular the importance of providing greater job opportunities for young men and women, and stepping up support to young people in acquiring labour market-relevant skills through education, vocational training and access to digital technologies. These efforts will be supported through increased EU and bilateral funding – including a new EU Trust Fund – which we assess will help tackle youth unemployment and other drivers of migration.

The UK is committed to ensuring that the pledges made at Valletta are followed up quickly and that progress is monitored. In the Horn of Africa, the main mechanism to achieve this will be the EU/African Union “Khartoum Process” on tackling migration. The UK took on the chair of the Khartoum Process on 23 November and hosted a Senior Officials Meeting in London on 24 November. Alongside our partners, we will use this process to drive forward concrete action.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-03-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recommendations of the report of the Harvard Global Health Institute and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Independent Panel on Global Response to Ebola published in The Lancet online on 22 November 2015, with particular reference to the creation of a Global Health Committee of the UN Security Council.

Baroness Verma

The Ebola crisis demonstrated the need for reform of the international system of response to disease outbreaks, including reform of the World Health Organisation (WHO). Several independent groups have made important recommendations including the Harvard Global Health Institute and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Independent Panel. The WHO Director General commissioned an independent Advisory Group on Reform of WHO’s work in Outbreaks and Emergencies with Health and Humanitarian Consequences. This group considered the Harvard and London School reports but did not include the creation of a Global Health Committee of the United Nations (UN) Security Council in the recommendations they have made to the WHO. Her Majesty’s Government (HMG) supports the Advisory Group recommendations which aim to equip and empower WHO to deliver more effectively in outbreak response and to fulfil its leadership and coordination role in humanitarian crises and to do so with independent oversight. HMG will assess a progress update on WHO’s implementation of these reforms at the World Health Assembly in May.