Select committee: Foreign Affairs Committee
Recommendation 14
Tenth Report - Countries at crossroads: UK engagement in Central Asia
Published 10 Nov 2023
Paragraph 55
Addressed to Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Foreign Affairs Committee The UK’s engagement in Central Asia All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
Civil society organisations act as a bastion against totalitarianism and a counter to foreign disinformation. We welcome the UK Government’s support of civil society organisations in Central Asia. However, this support needs to be fit for purpose and accessible to those organisations that need it most. We recommend that the reporting requirements for civil society organisations receiving funds from the UK Government are amended so as to provide for an appropriate level of accountability needed and allow the maximum agency in their operations.
From: Foreign Affairs Committee, Tenth Report - Countries at crossroads: UK engagement in Central Asia (HC 1158), paragraph 55, 10 November 2023
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 25 January 2024 (deadline 10 January 2024).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government agrees with the Committee on the value of closer engagement with Central Asia but responds "Partially Agree" to most recommendations, and "Disagree" to two on illicit finance and sanctions.
- On a Central Asia 5+UK meeting, it agrees and is "exploring opportunities for a Ministerial CA5+UK meeting in 2024", considering the format and agenda.
- On a Diplomatic Academy, it partially agrees, saying it would require "a significant investment in resources" and that the FCDO International Academy's resources are "not currently sufficient"; it will continue to consider informal ways of sharing expertise.
- It disagrees that the UK facilitates kleptocracy through under-enforcement, citing the Economic Crime Acts and a new National Crime Agency Combatting Kleptocracy Cell.
- It disagrees that the REPO Task Force should focus on sanctions evasion in Central Asia, saying it does not have the mandate for regionally focused work, though the UK is prioritising the issue through other channels.