Recommendations & Conclusions
24 items
1
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We understand that the FCDO has reasons for clearly defining and limiting its liability in respect of its contractual relationships with its external partners. However, we believe that events in Afghanistan have clearly illustrated that the Government’s policies should encompass much more than the legal aspects of duty of care …
Government response. The Government stands by its duty of care obligations to those whom it employs directly. The FCDO publishes travel advice to reflect the security situation in each country. This is updated frequently and reflects the FCDO’s best advice in light …
2
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We believe that the FCDO should consider what moral obligations it has to aid sector workers who deliver UK aid and FCDO aims and objectives. We urge the FCDO to take a broader, more holistic view of its duty of care to people working in the aid sector.
Government response. The Government stands by its duty of care obligations to those whom it employs directly. The FCDO publishes travel advice to reflect the security situation in each country. This is updated frequently and reflects the FCDO’s best advice in light …
3
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We recommend that the FCDO take steps to better identify and assess the particular risks facing aid workers so that it can respond more effectively to those aid workers when they are in need of support in countries or regions where there is acute instability or signs of a rapidly …
Government response. The Government stands by its duty of care obligations to those whom it employs directly. The FCDO publishes travel advice to reflect the security situation in each country. This is updated frequently and reflects the FCDO’s best advice in light …
4
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We were disappointed about the exclusion from the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme of Afghan aid workers to whom the UK Government had clear lines of moral responsibility, either because they were sub- contracted by the UK Government or employed by aid agencies in receipt of UK aid. …
Government response. The Home Office retains overall responsibility for immigration and visa policy, and considering applications to enter and stay in the UK. The capacity of the UK to resettle people is not unlimited, and difficult decisions about who should be prioritised …
5
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We call on the Government to accelerate without further delay all pathways of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) and ensure that aid sector staff are explicitly recognised and prioritised for protection under the ACRS.
Government response. The Home Office retains overall responsibility for immigration and visa policy, and considering applications to enter and stay in the UK. The capacity of the UK to resettle people is not unlimited, and difficult decisions about who should be prioritised …
6
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
The Government should not consider people evacuated under Operation Pitting under the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), instead it should consider those people under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme (ARAP) or other pre-existing pathways. The ACRS should be reserved for people: • located in Afghanistan; • located in …
Government response. As the situation in Afghanistan deteriorated rapidly, the Government worked at pace to evacuate eligible people to the UK. This included Afghans who had been approved for resettlement under ARAP, as well as British Nationals and their eligible family members …
7
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
The Government should ensure transparency of reporting on the number of people resettled under the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) by publishing a quarterly report on the number of people resettled under that scheme, publishing that first report by the end of June 2022.
Government response. editions of Immigration Statistics.
8
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We welcome the establishment of the Joint Afghanistan Casework Unit but note the lack of clarity around the cost, staffing and current workload of that Unit. We are also concerned that more than three months after it was set up there is still no clarity on whether or not any …
Government response. As part of HMG’s relocation and resettlement effort, we support those eligible to come to the UK from Afghanistan to do so. The Government has made clear that the initial target of resettling 5000 people during Year 1 of the …
9
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We are very concerned about the time the Government has taken to disburse the UK aid it has pledged to Afghanistan, given the considerable and escalating humanitarian need in the country. The Government should have worked faster to disburse the UK aid it pledged to Afghanistan in 2021.
Government response. funding is spent responsibly. The FCDO has done this in Afghanistan. The FCDO’s approach has been to ensure that aid is phased against developing needs, partners’ capability to implement, and to respond to aid agencies’ appeals such as the UN …
10
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We welcome the Government’s publication of 15 December 2021 showing details of the allocation and disbursal of the aid it has pledged to Afghanistan. We urge the Government to publish monthly updates on the allocation and disbursal of its aid to Afghanistan and to countries in the region.
Government response. We recognise the importance of keeping Parliament updated on our activities, and delivering on our transparency commitments. In addition to the detailed Written Ministerial Statement (WMS) laid by Lord Ahmad on 15 December, a second WMS published [w/b 25 April] …
11
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We urge the FCDO to release more information on its Development Tracker web pages to better ensure the transparency of reporting on the ODA funding it has allocated to projects in Afghanistan (if necessary, redacting parts of that information to mitigate any risks to safety and security).
Government response. Information and documents relating to the majority of funding in 2021/22 has been redacted and re-uploaded to Development Tracker – owing to security concerns and requests from our partners. New or recently amended programmes are currently being redacted, and will …
12
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We urge the FCDO to update information on all ODA allocations (for all countries) on Development Tracker within a three-month period of those allocations having been made. (Paragraph 63) Other factors affecting the humanitarian situation and the disbursal of aid
Government response. The Development Tracker is directly linked with the FCDO’s financial systems so all financial contributions to partners will be published on the website within three months, and in most cases much more quickly with any potentially sensitive information redacted.
13
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
The Government has been far too slow to work with its international counterparts to find ways to help unblock the banking system in Afghanistan. This has put at grave risk the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan. It is also deepening the humanitarian suffering of the people …
Government response. We do not accept the Committee’s conclusion. We have been discussing this at senior level with the US and other bilateral partners, and directly with the UN, including key agencies, the World Bank, and other relevant institutions since September 2021. …
14
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
The UK Government should be taking more urgent steps to collaborate with its international counterparts, economists, representatives of the banking sector and aid organisations to find ways to help address more rapidly the banking crisis in Afghanistan to ease the humanitarian suffering of, and enable the delivery of humanitarian assistance …
Government response. We do not accept the Committee’s conclusion. We have been discussing this at senior level with the US and other bilateral partners, and directly with the UN, including key agencies, the World Bank, and other relevant institutions since September 2021. …
15
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We recognise the necessity of having to work with the Taliban. We endorse the Government’s policy of developing a pragmatic working relationship with the Taliban to enable humanitarian aid to reach the people of Afghanistan.
Government response. FCDO officials continue to engage in pragmatic dialogue with the Taliban. Pending our being able to restore a diplomatic presence in Kabul, we have opened a temporary UK Mission to Afghanistan in Doha to lead our diplomatic engagement. Senior officials …
16
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We urge the Government to maintain its policy of working with the Taliban to enable humanitarian aid to reach the people of Afghanistan.
Government response. we regularly make clear to the Taliban this requires, among other things, no interference with humanitarian operations, unconditional access for aid workers, and the full access for women and girls to services.
17
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We stand with the UK Government on seeking to ensure that the rights of women and girls are respected by the Taliban.
Government response. We regularly press the Taliban to respect the rights of women and girls, including the right of access to education, jobs, and freedom of movement. The Government has made clear its condemnation of the Taliban’s 23 March decision not to …
18
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We call on the Government to ensure that it maintains its focus on working to try and ensure that the Taliban adopts a moderate position whereby it commits to behaving pragmatically towards the inclusion of women, girls and other minority groups in Afghan society.
Government response. assistance. We regularly consult with Afghan women to inform our policy and programming response; on March 24, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad, Minister for South Asia, convened an advisory group of prominent Afghan women leaders. We are also committed that at least …
19
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We welcome the adoption of resolution 2615 at the UN Security Council on 22 December 2021, notwithstanding its limitations, and the UK Government’s adoption of that resolution into UK law.
Government response. We continue to consult with aid organisations in the Tri-Sector Group, including on the issue of guidance for NGOs working in countries such as Afghanistan. The Tri-Sector Group comprises NGOs, banks, and government departments and regulators, and provides a platform …
20
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We urge the UK Government to further step up its efforts on working with the UN to ensure that aid organisations can effectively operate under the exemptions that UN resolution 2615 (and consequent UK law) permits. It should also urge the UN Security Council to extend those exemptions beyond their …
Government response. We continue to consult with aid organisations in the Tri-Sector Group, including on the issue of guidance for NGOs working in countries such as Afghanistan. The Tri-Sector Group comprises NGOs, banks, and government departments and regulators, and provides a platform …
21
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
The UK Government should consult with representatives of aid organisations to ensure that it has issued adequate guidance on how to operate further to the adoption of UN resolution 2615 into UK law.
Government response. We continue to consult with aid organisations in the Tri-Sector Group, including on the issue of guidance for NGOs working in countries such as Afghanistan. The Tri-Sector Group comprises NGOs, banks, and government departments and regulators, and provides a platform …
22
Recommendation
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We welcome the UK’s participation in the Norwegian Government’s talks with the Taliban at the end of January 2021. We call on the UK Government to press for UN resolution 2615 to be extended, or further resolutions to be adopted, to provide exemptions for development assistance, closely linked to the …
Government response. Resolution 2615 provides a humanitarian assistance ‘exception’ to para 1 (a) of Resolution 2255. It also includes an ‘exception’ for other activities that support basic human needs in Afghanistan. Resolution 2615 will be reviewed within a year of it being …
23
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We welcome the steps the Government has taken to help free up the funds from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund. However, the World Bank’s progress on releasing those funds has been agonizingly slow. Political and bureaucratic wrangling is impeding the release of over $1 billion already set aside for the …
Government response. The UK has been, and continues to be, a leading voice supporting the repurposing of the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund. We were instrumental in supporting the announcement of 10 December 2021 transferring out $280 million of available funds to support …
24
Conclusion
Fifth Report - Afghanistan: UK support …
We ask the Government to do more to encourage the World Bank to swiftly release the remaining funds from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund so that aid organisations can use that money to provide humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan. (Paragraph 100) Afghanistan: UK support for aid workers and …
Government response. The UK is supportive of funds being released as soon as possible. We have worked consistently with international partners to support the World Bank in unlocking and repurposing existing funding to maintain the provision of basic services in support of …