Recommendations & Conclusions
8 items
11
Recommendation
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
We recommend that the Government commits to publishing an impact assessment for every year in which cuts to ODA are implemented, including the 2026/27 financial year, and providing rationale for how these decisions align with the impact that UK aid aims to achieve. (Recommendation, Paragraph 39)
Government response. The government agrees and plans to publish the impact assessment for ODA cuts following the finalisation of ODA programme allocations.
18
Conclusion
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
We recognise that multilateral organisations can offer good VfM in many circumstances. However, it is concerning that the FCDO has not commissioned a review of its multilateral aid spend since 2016, despite £2.8 billion of core ODA funding being spent through multilaterals in 2024. (Conclusion, Paragraph 58)
Government response. The government disagrees with the concern, stating that multilateral aid spending is regularly scrutinized through various internal processes (PrOF, Central Assurance Assessments) and external assessments (MOFAN), and is evaluated during Spending Reviews.
19
Recommendation
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
We recommend that the Government conducts a new multilateral aid review of its current ODA spending to ensure that VfM is being achieved by the end of the 2025/26 financial year. This should include: a. An evaluation of the most effective proportion of spending through multilateral vs bilateral programming; b. …
Government response. The government disagrees with conducting a new multilateral aid review, stating that FCDO funding to multilateral organizations is already regularly scrutinized through existing processes like PrOF, Central Assurance Assessments, and Spending Review evaluations.
25
Conclusion
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
The FCDO’s use of private contractors is not inherently poor value for money. However, the published organisation and activity data of all implementing partners, including private contractors, is often incomplete and obscure. This exposes every pound spent to a higher risk of under-delivering impact. (Conclusion, Paragraph 87)
Government response. The government agrees that implementing partner data is incomplete and commits to improving IATI publishing by encouraging compliance, reviewing its approach to increase publishing while reducing administrative burden, and working with IATI to streamline the process.
27
Conclusion
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
The FCDO must make every effort to improve the transparency of the data it collects on its engagement with contractors and operating partners. The information that is required of organisations to report through IATI must be published in a way that is clear, user-friendly, and complete. (Recommendation, Paragraph 89)
Government response. The government agrees and is committed to ensuring data is published clearly and user-friendly. They will continue to evolve DevTracker based on user feedback and work with the IATI community to improve data accessibility on D-Portal.
31
Conclusion
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
It is also positive that the FCDO recognises that the lack of data in many of the contexts it operates in means that some quantitative metrics are not possible or of good quality, and offers flexibility around this for operating partners. (Conclusion, Paragraph 101)
Government response. The FCDO partially agrees with the conclusion, stating it is committed to ensuring MEL requirements are proportionate and will reinforce this approach through forthcoming guidance updates and programme performance reviews.
37
Conclusion
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
It is concerning that Programme Managers do not feel valued within the FCDO, a problem compounded by capacity issues and higher expectations than made of counterparts elsewhere in Government. Despite the Minister’s assurances that the FCDO recognises the importance of management, we are sceptical that measures such as mandatory training …
Government response. The government agrees with the committee's concern regarding programme manager workload and feeling undervalued. They are addressing this through the FCDO2030 initiative, which includes aligning workforce plans, investing in professional development, expanding expertise access, and providing qualifications and new support …
38
Conclusion
7th Report – Assessing Value, Ensuring …
Accepted
The FCDO must make every effort to ensure that its staff feel valued and appreciated within the organisation, particularly amidst budget insecurity. The Committee recommend that the FCDO commissions a rapid capacity assessment, and recruit or offer secondments to additional specialists to relieve overworked Programme Managers, rebalance workloads and bring …
Government response. The government agrees and is addressing staff value and workloads through FCDO2030 initiatives, including workforce planning, professional development, agile deployment models, and embedding advisors for program leadership. These actions aim to strengthen project delivery and provide surge support.