UK Government’s aid cuts will deepen the global displacement crisis, hitting girls and women the hardest
The UK Government’s aid cuts will deepen the global displacement crisis and hit women and girls the hardest, while there is no serious plan to address the humanitarian needs of the record-high number of refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs). This is according to a new report from the International Development Committee (IDC), a cross-party group of MPs.
There are currently over 123 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, a number that has grown by 187% in the last 13 years. The report found that Government cuts to overseas aid spending will likely contribute to even greater numbers fleeing their homes and have the strongest impact on girls and women. Cuts will also reduce the number of emergency services available to people who have been forced to flee.
Kathleen Spencer Chapman, Director of Influencing and External Affairs at global children’s charity Plan International UK said:
“The report underlines that the Government’s devastating cuts to overseas aid have come at the worst possible time for the world’s most vulnerable people. We are especially alarmed by the impact of cuts on displaced girls. When girls are forced to flee they are most at risk of going without food, permanently losing their education and being subject to gender-based violence.
“We urgently need clarity from the Government on its plan to support displaced people, especially the tens of millions of girls worldwide currently living with the trauma of losing their homes to conflict, persecution and climate change. The protection of girls must be at the forefront of any Government decision-making on how to begin to address this crisis.
“We know from our work with displaced girls across the world – from providing education in refugee communities to establishing child-friendly spaces that protect girls from violence - that overseas aid funding is a lifeline for girls who have lost their homes.
“Instead of turning away, the Government should return humanitarian spending to at least £1.5 billion per annum, with a dedicated proportion of this funding supporting displaced people overseas. This is a catastrophe that will only worsen without dedicated scaled-up Government support for displaced families. Children who have been forced to flee their homes through no fault of their own deserve better.”
Plan International UK Press Office
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