Source · Select Committees · International Development Committee
Recommendation 25
25
Accepted
The situation in Tigray is dire and far from improving, despite the significant efforts of...
Conclusion
The situation in Tigray is dire and far from improving, despite the significant efforts of humanitarian agencies to provide assistance.55 Many thousands of people have been displaced by fighting and there are reports of some villages being completely emptied.56 Thousands more are trapped by fighting or lack transport to escape it.57 Basic services, such as communications and electricity, have been disrupted and social services have collapsed.58 Universities and health centres have been vandalised, looted or destroyed and armed actors have threatened health workers.59 The police and judicial systems have ceased to function.60 The Minister for Africa, told us: The conflict has caused a collapse in all essential services: health; water; sanitation; basic, life-saving, maternal healthcare and vaccination. The core of development work is not deliverable.61
Government response summary AI-generated
The government states it is working with partners to assess needs and identify gaps, and has redirected some aid to the Tigray response due to urgent needs. They commit to continuously reviewing their aid programme and collaborating with other donors to raise awareness and mobilise resources.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government · verbatim extract
Accepted
We remain concerned by the impact of the continued fighting in the Tigray region of Ethiopia on the people of Tigray. Since November 2020, they have had to endure egregious human rights violations and abuses, including extra-judicial killings, rape and sexual and gender based violence and displacement on ethnic grounds that has seen tens of thousands flee their homes. The humanitarian situation has become increasingly dire, with the UN assessing that only around 1 million people have received basic food assistance out of up to 5.2 million people in desperate need. Much of the region remains inaccessible to humanitarian agencies due to ongoing insecurity and denial of access by forces on the ground. UK Special Envoy for Famine Prevention and Humanitarian Affairs, Nick Dyer, visited Ethiopia from 19–25 May, where he travelled to Tigray and engaged the Government of Ethiopia. He saw a hospital that had been bombed and government offices and stores of education and medical equipment that had been ransacked. At present the level of insecurity means that basic services, in certain locations, cannot be resumed. Our partners on the ground report repeated looting and targeting of restocked health centres, for example, meaning the violence must stop before services can be fully re-started.
Read the full response on Parliament ↗